Update: 3-Car Crash on 101 Results in 2 Seriously Injured

Two people sustained serious injuries and two others were hospitalized Monday morning when three cars collided on southbound Highway 101 near the Silveira Ranch, just north of Novato, sources said.

The driver of a 1999 Ford Mustang appeared to have upper-body injuries as he was transported to Marin General Hospital, according to Battalion Chief Jeff Veliquette of the . Later, Officer Eric Hohmeister said the man had major head injuries.

The front-seat passenger in that car also had serious injuries, he said.

The two others — one from the Mustang and one from a Volkswagen Jetta — were taken to Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Terra Linda, but none of the injuries appeared to be life-threatening, he said.

The California Highway Patrol first reported a three-car crash at 6:47 a.m., but it became apparent that the third car was driven by a Good Samaritan who stopped to help, Veliquette said.

A Sig alert was sent out by the CHP at 7:08 a.m., and traffic began to back up toward Petaluma as two southbound lanes were blocked. Glass and debris was strewn on the pavement, and several more people stopped to try and help, according to the CHP website. The lanes were reopened at 7:52 a.m.

Hohmeister said the Mustang had slowed to a stop in traffic and was rammed from behind by the Jetta. The Mustang was pushed into a Dodge Ram 3500 truck driven by a Santa Rosa man.

Veliquette said most of the wreckage ended up in the center divide area just south of the Silveira Ranch driveway. He said the Mustang sustained major damage to the front and rear and the Jetta had only front-end damage.

"The Mustang was sandwiched," he said. "The driver took a pretty good hit to his head, neck and chest."

The driver was later identified as Cresencio Chavez-Figueroa, 57, of Cotati. Francisco Donan-Herrera, 38, of Santa Rosa, the right front passenger in the Mustang, complained of pain in his right leg and left arm. The Mustang's right rear passenger, Jorge Donan, 27, of Petaluma, suffered cuts on his face and complained of neck and back pain.

The Jetta's driver, Michael Samples, 55, of Santa Rosa, complained of chest pain after the wreck.

Sixteen personnel from Novato Fire were at the crash site, and crews from Marinwood and Marin County Fire covered Novato duties during the incident.

— Bay City News Service contributed to this report.