Three-Vehicle Crash on Petaluma Bridge Sends 1 to Hospital

A man was hospitalized after his car was sandwiched between two others in a chain-reaction crash Sunday afternoon on the Petaluma Bridge, the Novato Fire District reported.

A man in a small white sedan sustained back injuries and was transported to Marin General Hospital shortly after the wreck on westbound Highway 37 at 5:43 p.m., said Novato Fire Battalion Chief Jeff Veliquette. The crash took place in Sonoma County right near the highest point of the bridge, he said.

The first vehicle, a Honda CRV, was rear-ended by the man in the white sedan, and then his car was struck from behind by a woman driving a Dodge Durango truck, Veliquette said. The occupants of the lead vehicle, a mother and a baby, were unhurt. The woman in the truck was treated at the site and didn't require hospitalization, he said.

The man in the white sedan was trapped inside, so the firefighters used extrication equipment to peel off two doors to let him out. His back injuries did not seem to be major, Veliquette said.

The California Highway Patrol is investigating the cause of the crash, Veliquette said.

Novato Fire responded with an engine, a ladder truck, a paramedic unit and battalion chief. A crew from the Lakeville Fire was in transit but was cancelled once the situation was assessed by first responders.

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