Head-on crash near South Lake Tahoe hospitalizes 5; CHP says ice, speed were factors

A head-on crash Monday near South Lake Tahoe sent five people to nearby hospitals with major injuries.

Unsafe speeds and icy conditions along Highway 89 factored into the 8:15 a.m. collision, said California Highway Patrol officers. The driver of a Chevrolet heading north on Highway 89 lost control of the vehicle north of Picketts Junction, according to the CHP.

Picketts Junction is in Alpine County, about 18 miles south of South Lake Tahoe.

The vehicle then veered into the southbound lane and into the path of a Mazda, colliding with the car.

Two people inside the Mazda, a 33-year-old woman and a 40-year-old man from Berkeley, were taken to Barton Memorial Hospital in South Lake Tahoe. The driver of the Chevrolet, a 49-year-old man from Huntington Beach, was also taken to Barton, according to the CHP.

A passenger in the Chevrolet, a 45-year-old woman from Huntington Beach, and another unidentified passenger, were also hospitalized.

The collision was under investigation Monday.

Darrell Smith

The Sacramento Bee

916-321-1040

Darrell Smith is a local reporter for The Sacramento Bee. He joined The Bee in 2006 and previously worked at newspapers in Palm Springs, Colorado Springs and Marysville. Smith was born and raised at Beale Air Force Base and lives in Elk Grove.