Major injuries in stolen-vehicle crash in Merced County

Two unidentified men suffered major injuries Sunday when a stolen vehicle struck a steel power pole, split in half and both men were ejected, California Highway Patrol officers reported.

Investigators said the vehicle, a Honda Accord, was heading west just before 4:09 p.m. on August Avenue, west of Merced Avenue, near Delhi.

The vehicle was traveling at more than 55 mph and was seen driving on the center line on a flat rear tire, witnesses told CHP officers.

“Vehicles pulled to the shoulder in order to avoid a head-on collision,” Officer Moises Onsurez said.

The vehicle then drove across the eastbound lane of traffic on August Avenue and onto the south shoulder where it spun out of control and struck a large steel power pole and was sheared in half, officers said.

Both men were found on the ground near the wrecked vehicle, authorities said.

One man was flown to Memorial Medical Center and the other was taken by ground ambulance to Doctors Medical Center, both in Modesto. Updates on their conditions were not available Monday.

The vehicle had been reported stolen a few hours before the crash from the city of Merced, officers said.

“It is unknown who was driving at the time of the collision,” Onsurez said. “It is unknown if alcohol was a factor in this collision.”

Onsurez said the cause of the crash remains under investigation.

This story was originally published May 25, 2015 at 10:31 AM with the headline "Major injuries in stolen-vehicle crash in Merced County."