Rollover crash off Highway 101 in Petaluma injures two

Two people went to a Santa Rosa hospital late Tuesday night after their van rolled off Highway 101 in Petaluma, landing hidden from view in the dark and the pouring rain, according to a Rancho Adobe fire official.

Firefighters were called about 10:45 p.m. to a crash south of Petaluma Boulevard North. The van had ended up some 80 feet down an embankment, stopping up against trees with its undercarriage facing out and couldn’t be seen from the highway, said Rancho Adobe fire Battalion Chief Herb Wandel.

An injured woman had crawled out and made her way up to the highway, at times stepping into a lane as she frantically tried to wave down passing cars.

With the darkness and the rain it was difficult to see the woman and apparently it took at least several minutes before someone stopped and called for help. That driver then apparently moved on, leaving the woman again in the dark, and firefighters struggled initially to spot her or the crash site, Wandel said.

Firefighters found a man trapped in the wreckage, pinned by the mini van, which was on top of one arm. They raised the vehicle off his arm and got him up to the highway.

The two were taken to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital. Further details weren’t available Wednesday from the CHP.

You can reach Staff Writer Randi Rossmann at 521-5412 or randi.rossmann@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter@rossmannreport.