LOWER LAKE, Calif. – A single-vehicle crash early Saturday morning near Lower Lake claimed the lives of two people, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The CHP said the crash occurred at 2:30 a.m. Saturday on Morgan Valley Road east of Bonham Road.
Initial reports from both sheriff's personnel and firefighters at the scene on Saturday had indicated one fatality, but in a Sunday morning report the CHP said that, in fact, two male subjects had died.
Neither of the two individuals' names, ages or cities of residence were released by the CHP in its Sunday report, as the agency said the subjects are still in the process of being identified.
The CHP said the driver and his passenger were in a blue 2005 Toyota Scion, traveling westbound on Morgan Valley Road in clear conditions and at an undetermined high rate of speed when, for reasons yet to be determined, the Toyota went out of control in a northerly directly, hitting a tree.
The crash's severity resulted in the vehicle becoming engulfed in flames, according to the CHP.
The CHP said the driver and passenger died of their injuries at the crash site.
Fire personnel arrived on scene and extinguished the flames, the CHP said. Officials at the scene early Saturday said the crash sparked a small vegetation fire – about 10 feet by 10 feet in size – that was quickly contained.
The Lake County Sheriff's Office is conducting a coroner's case for both parties, the CHP said.
As part of that investigation, the CHP said authorities are working to identify the two individuals who died.
Both of the individuals were using their safety equipment, the CHP said.
The CHP said the crash remains under investigation by Officer John Geer.
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