Head-on crash involving wrong-way driver leaves 2 Modesto residents dead near Merced
MERCED COUNTY —Two Modesto residents died in a head-on crash involving a wrong-way driver early Thanksgiving morning in Merced County, authorities said Friday.
It happened at around 4:14 a.m. along southbound Highway 99 near Atwater and Buhach.
One of the deceased, a 22-year-old man, was driving a Hyundai Elantra northbound in the southbound lanes when he collided head-on with a Chevy Tahoe that was carrying four people, the California Highway Patrol Merced said.
The collision caused the Chevy to turn onto its roof. The driver and two rear passengers were able to exit the vehicle before it caught fire. The front passenger, a 35-year-old woman, was pulled from the burning vehicle by CHP officers.
The woman and the Hyundai driver were both pronounced dead at the scene. The other Chevy occupants suffered moderate to major injuries.
It remains unclear at this time why the Hyundai driver was driving in the wrong lanes and if he was under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
The crash remains under investigation.
