Major injuries reported in separate crashes Sunday in Merced County

Two men suffered major injuries Sunday in separate crashes on the outskirts of Atwater, the California Highway Patrol reported.

A tractor-trailer crashed into a guardrail before slamming into a eucalyptus tree just before 8 a.m. on Highway 99 near Applegate Road, Officer Eric Zuniga said in a telephone interview with the Sun-Star.

The driver, 64-year-old Charles Westbrooks of Mississippi, suffered major injuries but was expected to survive, investigators said. He was flown to a Modesto-area hospital for treatment.

The cause of the crash remained under investigation Sunday afternoon.

While officers were investigating the big-rig crash, a second collision was reported in the area. Robert Nelms, 25, was riding a 2017 Suzuki motorcycle when he crashed into the back of a 2005 GMC pickup truck. Nelms was flown to Community Regional Medical Center in Fresno with unspecified major injuries. An update on his condition was not available Sunday.

The driver of the pickup truck, 54-year-old Carlos Pacheco, was not injured, Zuniga said Sunday.

Both men are Atwater residents, the CHP reported.

Zuniga said neither drug nor alcohol use are suspected in either crash.