- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
UPDATE: Two children killed, drivers injured in head-on crash near Clearlake Oaks
CLEARLAKE OAKS, Calif. – Two children died and two drivers were injured – one seriously – in a head-on, two-vehicle crash east of Clearlake Oaks Tuesday afternoon.
In a Tuesday evening report, the California Highway Patrol did not release the names and ages of the two children or the name of a seriously injured 38-year-old woman – all of them from Shasta – who were traveling in a 2001 Toyota Sienna van, pending notification of family.
Steven Chapin, 42, of Finley, a Lake County Special Districts employee, was in the second vehicle, a county-owned 2009 Ford F-450 pickup, according to the CHP and county officials.
The crash occurred at 3:40 p.m. on Highway 20 east of Old Long Valley Road, the CHP said in its initial report.
The woman and the two children were traveling in the van at an unknown speed eastbound on Highway 20, descending a slight downhill grade, with Chapin headed westbound going up the grade, also at an unknown speed, the CHP said.
The CHP said the woman in the van made an unsafe turning movement, causing her vehicle to rotate to the left and enter the eastbound lane.
The right side of the van and Chapin's pickup collided, causing major damage to the vehicles, the CHP said.
The two children, a boy and a girl who were in the van's rear seat and wearing seat belts, were pronounced dead at the scene, the CHP said.
The woman suffered major injuries, the CHP said. Radio reports indicated that she had to be extricated from the van.
She was transported by ambulance to St. Helena Hospital Clear Lake; from there, she was taken by air ambulance to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, according to radio reports and the CHP.
Chapin suffered minor injuries and was transported by private vehicle to St. Helena Hospital Clear Lake, the CHP said.
Both vehicles were impounded for inspection, the CHP said.
The female driver and Chapin were wearing seat belts, according to the CHP.
Alcohol does not appear to be a factor in the crash, based on the CHP investigation.
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