Two major accidents in one night on Highway 58
| Sunday, Nov 08 2009 03:38 PM
Last Updated Sunday, Nov 08 2009 04:31 PM
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Two major accidents on rural Highway 58 east of Buttonwillow Saturday night left two Bakersfield men dead and a big-rig driver with major injuries. The roadway was closed for four hours.
The Bakersfield residents were identified by county coroners as Randy Bertrand, 28, and Daniel Ezzell, 31.
Bertrand and Ezzell died in the second accident, a single-car rollover around 10:20 p.m. west of Bussell Road, between Enos Lane and Interstate 5.
The men were in a BMW headed west on 58. As the BMW came up behind a car turning right, it swerved. The driver over-corrected, causing the BMW to roll.
Neither Bertrand nor Ezzell wore a seatbelt, coroners say. Both were thrown from the BMW and died at the scene.
The fatal accident happened about 20 minutes after 58 had reopened following an earlier crash that shut it from about 6-10 p.m., the California Highway Patrol reported.
In the 6 p.m. incident, a big rig overturned and blocked both lanes of 58 after a passenger car ran a stop sign.
The driver of the big rig, 57-year-old Gary Scott of Odessa, Texas, was heading east on 58.
The driver of a 2001 Hyundai Accent -- who fled the scene -- had been traveling south on Brandt Road, which intersects 58 between I-5 and Enos Lane.
The Hyundai collided with the semi, causing the trucker to lose control and overturn.
Scott was taken to Kern Medical Center with major injuries. He was in fair condition Sunday afternoon, a nursing supervisor said.
The accident is being investigated by the Buttonwillow office of the California Highway Patrol.
