Lubbock, South Plains see spike in crashes over Labor Day weekend
Over the Labor Day weekend, the Texas Department of Transportation reported two fatal crashes in Hale and Crosby County, with other local law enforcement reporting numerous crashes in Lubbock and surrounding counties, with Lubbock police reporting more than 130 crashes over the weekend.
Hale County
A Plainview man was killed when the motorcycle he was on was struck by a pickup truck Saturday in Hale County.
Anthony Acosta, 20, died Saturday after a pickup truck failed to yield the right-of-way at the intersection of FM 400 and FM 3183 in Hale County, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety.
Investigators believe Acosta was driving a 2007 Yamaha R6 motorcycle south on FM 400, approaching FM 3138, while a 2022 GMC pickup was stopped facing east at the stop sign on FM 3138, attempting to turn north onto FM 400.
When the driver of the truck, 31-year-old Jorge Riojas, failed to yield at the stop sign to Acosta, both vehicles collided, according to the DPS.
Acosta was pronounced dead at the scene and Riojas suffered serious injuries and was airlifted via Aerocare to University Medical Center in Lubbock.
Crosby County
A Fairfield man is dead after a car crash on the side of Highway 62/82 on Monday.
According to the DPS, William Brunt Jr., age 71, pulled over on the improved shoulder of the highway to look up an address when the driver of a Honda CRV, 38-year-old Enrique Martinez, collided with Brunt from the back.
Brunt was pronounced at the scene due to injuries sustained from the crash and Martinez was transported to Covenant for non-incapacitating injuries.
The three other passengers in Brunt's car, 64-yea-old Norma Burnt, 55-year-old Michelle Johnson and 18-year-old Kelsee Johnson, were transported to UMC for non-incapacitating injuries.
Floyd County
Floyd County Sheriff's deputies responded to a collision on Thursday night on Highway 62, near the FM 54 intersection, that left two people dead.
According to the Sheriff, a red pickup failed to stop at the stop sign and collided with a black Cadillac.
According to local media, the driver of the pickup truck, 24-year-old Devin Andrews, died in the crash.
The driver of the Cadillac, Prajedos Villarreal was taken to UMC in an unknown condition. 34-year-old Linda Villarreal died at the scene. The condition of the other two passengers is unknown.
City of Lubbock
LPD responded to an officer-involved collision at the intersection of 66th and University on Sunday afternoon.
According to LPD, the officer was traveling south when it collided with a pick-up. It was not clear at the time who was at fault.
LPD officer Austin Taylor was found to have minor injuries when LPD arrived on the scene,
The driver and passengers of the pick-up, 30-year-old Albert Rodriguez, 33-year-old Matthew Flores and 32-year-old Armando Torres, were transported to UMC with moderate injuries.
According to LPD, the call center received 136 calls related to crashes from Friday to Monday. 51 of those calls were crashes without injuries. 36 were crashes with injuries and 49 were hit and runs.
According to LPD, the numbers include parking lot fender benders.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Lubbock, counties see an increase in crashes over Labor Day weekend
