Officials identify two men killed in crash near Two Rock

Two men killed in a head-on collision Monday morning in southwest Sonoma County were from Santa Rosa and Petaluma.

The victims were Carl Levine, 66, of Santa Rosa, and James Wheelock, 57, of Petaluma, according to the Sonoma County Coroner's Office. The two men died when their Nissan work pickup truck collided with a Lexus SUV on Valley Ford Road, north of the community of Two Rock.

CHP released details of the crash, stating that Barbara Thalacker, 72, of Sacramento, was driving east when she turned left in front of the truck driven by Levine.

She suffered moderate injuries in the crash and was taken to a local hospital, CHP said.

The 11:20 a.m. crash occurred near the Walker Road intersection. The pickup flipped in the impact, landing on its side and trapping Levine and Wheelock, who died from their injuries, CHP said.

U.S. Coast Guard Fire Chief Charles Funkhouser said a small fire started from the collision but was put out by a fire extinguisher.

Several emergency agencies responded to the crash, which was the second fatal collision on that stretch of Valley Ford Road since May.

The collision remains under investigation, and a final CHP report won't be issued for at least a month, if not several, CHP Officer Custodio Lopez said. Neither drugs nor alcohol are suspected as factors in the crash.

You can reach Staff Writer Randi Rossmann at 707-521-5412 or randi.rossmann@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter@rossmannreport. You can reach Staff Writer Kevin Fixler at 707-521-5336 or at kevin.fixler@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @kfixler.