6 People Injured in Separate Ventura Crashes

Six people were injured Wednesday in two separate crashes in Ventura, including an Oxnard woman who was driving her daughters and two friends to the opening day of the Ventura County Fair, officers said.

The collisions were two of more than half a dozen multi-vehicle crashes reported on county roadways Wednesday, officials said.

Fair-goer Lenae Stahr was driving on Harbor Boulevard when her Toyota Celica was struck at 11:24 a.m. by an out-of-control Ford Ranger that had been hit by another car, Ventura Police Officer Rick Murray said.

Stahr, 39, was taken by ambulance to Ventura County Medical Center where she was treated for neck and back pain and released Wednesday night, a nursing supervisor said.

Stahr’s daughters, Stephanie, 9, and Samantha, 6, were not injured, nor were two other passengers in Stahr’s car, Christil Colvin, 33, of Oxnard, and her daughter, Christine, 13.

Firefighters had to pry open the door of the Ranger to reach driver Palma Ball. The 53-year-old Ventura resident also went to the county hospital, where she was in fair condition after being treated for a head injury and back pain.

The driver of a Mazda Miata that first struck the truck, 28-year-old Tricia Cook of Ventura, was transported to the county hospital with possible bone fractures and back and neck pain. A nursing supervisor did not know if Cook was admitted.

Ball was turning south onto Harbor Boulevard from Oyster Street when she was struck by Cook. The impact drove Ball’s truck into the Celica, Murray said.

The crash closed northbound Harbor Boulevard for about an hour.

The collision was under investigation.

An hour later on Old Pacific Coast Highway north of Emma Wood State Beach, a county employee on a lunch break failed to yield and caused a three-car crash, California Highway Patrol Officer Paul Robbins said.

Water reclamation worker Robert B. Small, 56, was driving a county truck north on the highway to check a water pump when he decided to park by the beach to eat, Robbins said.

The Ventura resident turned left in front of a red Hyundai in the southbound lane. The Hyundai skidded about 80 feet before striking the truck.

“It just plowed into the right front of his truck, totaling the whole entire end,” Robbins said.

Andrew Jones, 18, of Camarillo, a passenger in the car, was airlifted to the county hospital with cuts over most of his body from shattered glass. He was in fair condition Wednesday night, a nursing supervisor said.

The car’s driver, Frank Quinones, 17, also of Camarillo, was in stable condition at Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura. He suffered broken leg bones and an injury to his right eye, Robbins said.

A second passenger in the car, David Chaparro, 18, of Ventura, was treated at the county hospital and released.

Small wasn’t hurt in the collision.

In another accident about an hour later at Oak Street and Thompson Boulevard, a Chevrolet Blazer driven by Santa Barbara resident David Elkins overturned after colliding with a truck hauling a small trailer. The truck was driven by Jose Cruz, 36, of Ventura.

The Blazer then struck a Ford Taurus driven by Robert Duckworth, 39, of Ventura.

Elkins, 29, was able to crawl from the wreckage through a rear window, Fire Capt. Mike Vaughn said. Neither man sought medical attention.