Crash sends two to hospital

Two Exeter residents sustained minor to moderate injuries in a two-car crash involving a sedan and an SUV.

The crash happened at about 10:25 a.m. Tuesday on Highway 65 and Avenue 200, just north of Strathmore. California Highway Patrol officer Mike Smith said the sedan was traveling north on Highway 65 in the slow lane and approaching Avenue 200 when the southbound SUV entered the highway’s left-turn lane and made a turn directly in front of the sedan.

The driver of the sedan wasn unable to react in time, causing the collision at the intersection.

Both vehicles came to rest on the northeast corner of Avenue 200 as a result of the impact.

Several motorists pulled over to render aid and southbound traffic on the highway briefly slowed down.

The driver and a passenger in the sedan were transported to Sierra View District Hospital for complaints of pain and minor to moderate injuries, Smith said. The driver of the SUV, identified as 24-year-old Joey Guereca of Strathmore, told authorities he was not injured.

Smith said neither alcohol nor drugs were a factor in the crash.

“Neither party was speeding and independent witnesses say that nobody was going excessively fast,” Smith said. “The guy in the SUV said he just didn’t see him.”

Contact Denise Madrid at 784-5000, ext. 1047. Follow her on Twitter @DeniseMadrid_.