A driver suspected of DUI went the wrong way down Highway 99 in Turlock Tuesday night and caused a head-on collision. The terrifying accident claimed one life and left two other victims injured.
KTXL-TV reported the crash happened in the southbound lanes near the Fulkerth Road exit in west Turlock on June 1, 2021.
The California Highway Patrol says the driver of a Ford Focus had been previously seen by multiple witnesses traveling in the wrong direction on 99. Officers found the driver passed out near the Lander Avenue exit and observed empty beer bottles in the vehicle. They attempted to make contact with the driver, but the suspect woke up and took off, hitting a patrol car as he fled north in the southbound lanes.
The driver continued on and just north of Fulkerth Road collided with a southbound Chevrolet pick-up in a frontal impact. The driver of the Ford Focus, a 43-year-old San Francisco man, was killed in the collision.
Two people in the truck were injured. One suffered minor injuries. The other victim was said to have major injuries and was taken to Doctor’s Medical Center in Modesto. The hospitalized victim is expected to recover.
DUI Dangers On Turlock Roads
Drivers under the influence of alcohol make the first of many bad decisions when they decide to get behind the wheel. Impaired drivers can be counted on to make unpredictable maneuvers and put other drivers at sudden risk. Cautious motorists will have difficulty anticipating the moves of a DUI driver and have little chance of avoiding a dangerous collision.
Local motorists should not think of drunk driving as just an occasional problem either. On just a single Friday night in Stanislaus County in December of 2020, the Highway Patrol recorded 14 DUI arrests.
California’s Transporation Injury Mapping System (TIMS) found that in 2020 Stanislaus County documented 2,785 total accidents causing over 4,000 injuries for the year. Those accidents lead to 69 traffic deaths and tragically nearly a third of those fatalities involved alcohol-related collisions.
Despite DUI awareness campaigns and increased patrols, intoxicated people are still making the choice to take the driver’s seat every day. These reckless choices can lead to devastating accidents that leave innocent victims to pay the extreme physical and financial consequences.
Assisting Victims After a Turlock Accident
If you or a loved one becomes the victim of an impaired driver, you have the right to file a claim for damages and seek help with your recovery. The at-fault driver’s car insurance provider is called upon to assist you with the costs of ambulance fees and hospital care. The rehabilitation and physical therapy needed in the months that follow should also be part of any support provided to victims.
Be sure to speak to an attorney in your area about the best options for keeping you and your family from getting targeted by the financial burdens of an accident that wasn’t your fault. You can visit our page on accident insurance claims for more information.
