Nine Injured in Two Multi-Car Collisions

Nine people were injured in two separate multiple-car collisions Sunday, one on the Ventura Freeway in Thousand Oaks and the other on Madera Road in Simi Valley, according to CHP and Simi Valley police officials.

In Thousand Oaks, four people were injured after a northbound driver on the Ventura Freeway at Rancho Road drifted into the next lane and struck a vehicle before slamming into the center divider and flipping over, said California Highway Patrol spokeswoman Kathleen Foster.

Enriquetta Lopez, 72, and Fabian Mendez, 13, both of Santa Ana, were passengers in the overturned vehicle. They were taken to Los Robles Regional Medical Center in Thousand Oaks. Lopez was in fair and stable condition, and Fabian, whose injuries were not life-threatening, was being evaluated, a nursing supervisor said.

The driver of the overturned vehicle, Aurelia Lopez, 19, and another passenger in the car, Hilaria Ibarra, 42, both of Santa Ana, were taken to St. John’s Pleasant Valley Hospital in Camarillo, where they were in fair and stable condition, a nursing supervisor said.

The accident occurred at 11:37 a.m. when Aurelia Lopez became distracted and crossed into the next lane, Foster said. She hit a car driven by Victor Jones, 75, of Santa Maria, who, in turn struck a vehicle driven by Michael McDonald, 37, of Thousand Oaks, in the next lane. Neither Jones nor McDonald were injured, Foster said.

About 15 minutes later, five people suffered minor injuries after Bethamy Ida Yovanovich, 20, of Simi Valley swerved to avoid a box on Madera Road near Shaver Court. She lost control of her vehicle and struck a car driven by Ramiro Rocha Alvarez, 23, of Simi Valley, police said.

The collision caused a chain reaction as Alvarez struck a car driven by Lisa Kilbane, 32, of Thousand Oaks, who then hit a car driven by Rick Olson, 34, of Saugus.

Yovanovich, Alvarez and Olson were treated for their injuries at Simi Valley Hospital and released, a nursing supervisor said. Also receiving minor injuries and released were Manny Anthony Farokania, 10, of Simi Valley and Olson’s passenger, Cindy Louise Montgomery, 28, also of Saugus.