Two people are dead and three more are in local hospitals following a serious accident in Chaffee County. Colorado authorities who typically respond to car accidents of this type have reported the fatalities and injuries. For the moment, charges are not being filed against anyone involved, though police believe that speed may have been a factor in the crash.
Details about this accident are scarce at this point, but according to the police report, a 57-year-old man was driving on Highway 24 when the crash occurred. Apparently the man lost control of his vehicle and slammed into another car somewhere around mile marker 217. The force of the impact killed the man and his passenger, a woman of indeterminate age.
Several people in the other car, including a 7-year-old child, were injured in the accident. All of these individuals were taken to a local hospital, where they are being treated for injuries of indeterminate severity. Police do not believe that alcohol or other intoxication factors played a role in the accident, but they have not ruled out speed as a possible factor in the crash. Their investigation is still underway as of this report.
Should the Colorado crash be found to be the result of driver error, whether that be intoxication or speed, the driver could be held responsible for the monetary damages resulting from the accident. Car accidents of this type are often the fault of one or another driver, or both. Injured parties could file for personal injury in a civil court setting to pursue full recovery of damages accrued due to the accident.