By BEN LUNDIN
Staff Reporter
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The driver and rear passenger of a Mazda 626 that was ripped in half in the crash, Derrick Paul, 31, of Des Allemands, and Corey Jones, 18, of North Carolina, died instantly. The Mazda's front passenger, Jennifer Young of Luling and driver of a 1993 Ford Van, Louis R Guerra Jr., 34, were transported to University Hospital with serious injuries.
While traveling westbound on Highway 90 between Live Oak Drive and the St. Charles Parish line at mile marker 251, Paul somehow lost control of the 1995 Mazda 626 and veered across the median towards oncoming traffic, according to the Louisiana State Police.
Guerra Jr's oncoming Ford Van reportedly slammed head-on with the Mazda and tore the car in half, sending the two halves into a tailspin that slung Paul and Jones out the window and onto the roadway before the rear half of the car came to a rest in the median and the front portion stopped on the right lane of Highway 90 eastbound.
The impact toppled the Ford van over once until it rested upright on Highway 90 eastbound.
A Chevrolet pick-up and Ford pick-up struck debris from the truck and were damaged. All the trucks' occupants were uninjured.
Authorities pronounced Paul and Jones dead at the scene, and transported Young and Guerra to University Hospital, according to the Louisiana State Police.
The three riders in the Mazada, Paul, Jones and Young, reportedly were not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash and investigators suspect Paul was speeding and under the influence of drugs or alcohol. A toxicology examination on Paul is pending.
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