Head-on collision only latest on dangerous highway

By BRANDON MESSICK
Daily Press Staff Writer
Two pickup trucks, weighing an approximate 4.5 tons each, met in a head-on collision Wednesday afternoon near the Duke Energy Services turnoff on U.S. 82. The collision left one vehicle upside down off the highway’s side, while the other idled in a pool of leaking engine fluids, its front end crushed inward.
The drivers, Alonzo D. Leya, 53, and James Baskett, 30, both of Lovington, were transported to Artesia General Hospital with only minor injuries, according to responding State Police Sgt. Pete Estrada. There were no passengers in either vehicle. … For the rest of the story, subscribe in print and on the web.