Two drivers were seriously injured in a head-on crash on U.S. 19 in Manatee County on Wednesday morning, the Florida Highway Patrol said.
The accident happened at 7:30 a.m. south of 52nd Street West, north of Palmetto.
Troopers say that a 32-year-old Bradenton woman was driving an SUV in the northbound lanes of U.S. 19. A 35-year-old St. Petersburg woman was driving an SUV in the southbound lanes.
For unknown reasons, the Bradenton woman drove off the highway, crossed the median, and entered U.S. 19 south. The Bradenton woman’s SUV then collided head-on with the St. Petersburg woman’s SUV traffic investigators say. The impact from the crash sent the Bradenton woman’s SUV into a ditch west of U.S. 19, where it overturned. The St. Petersburg woman’s SUV rotated before stopping on the highway.
Both of the women went to local hospitals with serious injuries. The Florida Highway Patrol says both drivers wore seat belts during the wreck.