Three people were injured, two critically, in a crash Friday night in Twentynine Palms. According to Sheriff and Twentynine Palms Fire Department reports, Tammy Owen, 50, of Valparaiso, Indiana, was driving a black 2013 Ford Raptor pick-up truck westbound on the highway when about 10:20 p.m. a gray, 2008 Nissan Altima, driven eastbound on the highway by Henry Casimir, 21, of Twentynine Palms, crossed the center line and crashed head on into Owen’s truck between Alfalfa and Timothy Avenues.
Witnesses told 9-1-1 the truck had flipped over from the impact, but bystanders were able to push the truck upright. Both vehicles were blocking the highway’s westbound lanes and traffic was diverted onto Two Mile Road for several hours. Fire fighters had to use the Jaws of Life to extricate Casimir from his car. He was flown by Mercy Air to Desert Hospital in Palm Springs with major injuries. Owen also sustained major injuries; her passenger, Ronald Owen, 52, also of Indiana, suffered minor injuries. They were both taken to Desert Hospital. Neither alcohol nor drugs appear to be a factor in the crash.
