Santa Rosa collision with dump truck sends two to hospital

Two men were sent to the hospital, one with serious head injuries, when a car and a dump truck collided on Airport Boulevard north of Santa Rosa Thursday afternoon.

The car, a white Ford Escort, had just come off the Highway 101 offramp and appeared to be making an illegal U-turn on Airport Boulevard around 1:30 p.m. when it turned into the path of the dump truck, said CHP spokesman Jonathan Sloat.

The Ford was badly damaged and its driver, 23-year-old Troy Bowen from Santa Rosa, was rushed to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital with severe head trauma, Sloat said. His passenger, 23-year-old Cameron Brayson, also of Santa Rosa, was taken to Kaiser Permanente Medical Center with minor injuries.

The driver of the dump truck, 52-year-old Kirvin Holtz of Santa Rosa, was not injured, Sloat said.

He added that officers are investigating whether or not alcohol was a factor for Bowen. Emergency personnel smelled alcohol on both men in the car and beer appeared to be sprayed all over the vehicle, Sloat said.

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