Six people injured when three cars crashed at busy Merced intersection over the weekend

Police are investigation a collision involving several vehicles that sent multiple people to hospitals on Saturday, according to authorities.

The three-vehicle collision occurred near the intersection of M Street and West 23rd Street at about 9:09 p.m., according to Merced Police Sgt. Nathan McKinnon. Police said it remains unclear just how the multi-stage collision occurred.

McKinnon said a Honda Pilot, driven by a 22-year-old man and a Toyota Camry, driven by a 24-year-old man, were traveling north on M Street at a higher rate of speed than a vehicle directly in front of them. According to police, it appears that at some point, the SUV and the sedan may have been involved in a collision behind a Toyota Tacoma, driven by a 44-year-old woman.

Police believe one of the vehicles collided with the truck causing it turn onto its side as the SUV crashed into the truck pinning it against a nearby tree. At one point during the incident, the sedan rolled onto its side and slid nearly an entire block, according to McKinnon.

Authorities said there were four passengers inside the SUV, two adults and two minors. The driver of the truck and the driver of the sedan were the only occupants in those vehicles. All occupants are believed to be Merced County residents, according to police.

Authorities said at least five people were transported to area hospitals with minor injuries and one person was transported to a trauma center with major injuries. An update on their conditions wasn’t immediately available Monday. McKinnon said police are working to obtain additional video of the incident from nearby buildings to determine what caused the collision.

“Speed is definitely going to be a related factor to this,” said McKinnon.

According to police, neither drugs nor alcohol appear to be a factor in the collision which remains under investigation.

Anyone with information regarding the collision is asked to contact Officer McKeeman at 209-388-7752 or by email at mckeemanc@cityofmerced.org.