Man seriously injured in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 101

A Lompoc man driving the wrong way on Highway 101 near Nipomo early Friday morning sustained major injuries after colliding head-on with another vehicle.

The San Luis Obispo Communication Center received a call at 1:23 a.m. about a driver traveling south on the northbound side of Highway 101 from Tefft Street at a high rate of speed, according to a CHP news release.

A head-on collision involving Emmett Hill, 25, and Jonathan Newell, 49, both of Lompoc, was reported at 1:28 a.m.

Hill was driving in the wrong direction in the No. 1 lane and collided with Newell, who was traveling north in the same lane about 2.2 miles south of Tefft Street.

The force of the impact pushed Hill’s vehicle north, where it came to rest in the median facing west. Newell’s vehicle also landed in a west-facing direction blocking the median and the No. 1 lane.

Newell was able to get out of his vehicle and call 911 for help. Hill was extricated from his vehicle and was transported to Marian Regional Medical Center in Santa Maria to be treated for major injuries.

Newell was sent to Arroyo Grande Community Hospital to be treated for minor injuries.

Alcohol or drugs are thought to have been a factor in the collision, which remains under investigation. Any witnesses are encouraged to call the CHP San Luis Obispo office at 805-594-8700.