LAKE COUNTY ? Three drivers caused three separate collisions by driving at unsafe speeds for rain and wind conditions Tuesday on Highway 20 at Henderson Drive near of Clearlake Oaks, the California Highway Patrol reported.
CHP logged a larger number of collisions Tuesday than normal during the first heavy rainfall of the season, Officer Mike Humble of CHP said.
“Especially during the early rains we expect to see more crashes because people don”t adjust their speed for the conditions,” Humble said.
Humble said he doesn”t know why there were three crashes in the same area Tuesday, except the heavy rains may have made it difficult for drivers to maneuver two S-curves in that spot.
A Lexus crossed over double yellow lines about 2:10 p.m. in the Henderson Drive area, hitting a semi-truck and then a Toyota Tacoma after coming out of a curve at unsafe speeds for the wet conditions, Humble said. None of the people complained of injuries.
At 10:30 a.m., a two-car crash led one driver to go to the hospital with neck pain and another to decline care for back pain, Humble said. One of the drivers was going too fast for conditions and crashed near Henderson Drive on Highway 20.
Another driver made an unsafe turn about 5:55 p.m. in the same area and crashed into the boulders that separate the road from Clear Lake, Humble said. No other vehicles were involved.
Tony Benevento, owner of Indian Beach Resort, saw the aftermath of the collisions near Henderson Drive from his resort on the lake, he said.
“I”ve seen more accidents there in the last three years than I have, well, anywhere on the planet,” he said.
Benevento said it was raining on and off yesterday in the area, but he had no problem driving Tuesday down the stretch on Highway 20.
“I”ve never had an issue day or night,” Benevento said. “I”ve never had my vehicle drift.”
Leaves, debris, oil and water on the road can make driving around a curve at 50 mph unsafe, even though drivers regularly do when roads are dry, Humble said.
“It just makes it a little more slick,” Humble said.
Drivers should slow down and increase their following distance to drive more safely, Humble said.
Humble also recommends drivers check their vehicles” equipment for safety, such as: tire tread, tire pressure, headlights, brakes and windshield wipers.
Contact Katy Sweeny at ksweeny@record-bee.com or call her directly at 263-5636, ext. 37.
