3 people seriously injured in 5-car Juneau wrong-way crash

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – Three people were seriously hurt and four vehicles demolished in a five-car wrong-way crash on the highway between downtown Juneau and the Mendenhall Valley.

Juneau police say the driver of a car in the outbound lane of the divided highway made a U-turn and drove toward downtown Juneau, starting the five-car pileup.

The compact car struck a car head-on. Two cars and a pickup then collided while trying to avoid the first two cars.

A 66-year-old man drove the car that reversed course. He was rushed to Bartlett Regional Hospital. Police obtained a blood sample from him to determine if he was impaired.

The man’s 70-year-old female passenger and the driver with whom he collided, a 31-year-old man, were flown to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle with serious injuries.