MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – Three local teenagers were seriously injured on Wednesday when the vehicle they were riding in went off the road and hit three trees.
Ashley Grainger, 16, of Hidden Valley Lake and Clearlake residents Aleesa Varner, 16, and Kayla Varner, 14, all sustained major injuries in the wreck, which occurred at 3 p.m. Wednesday near Middletown, according to the California Highway Patrol's Clear Lake area office.
The CHP said Grainger was driving a 2003 Nissan southbound on Spruce Grove Road north of the Jerusalem Grade at an undetermined but high rate of speed for the roadway conditions.
As the Nissan was exiting a sweeping left curve, Grainger allowed the vehicle to go off the west road edge and lost control of it, according to the CHP report.
The vehicle traveled sideways on the road's west dirt shoulder before sideswiping two trees and then hitting a third tree head-on, the CHP reported.
The CHP said both Grainger and Kayla Varner suffered a collapsed lung and fractured spine, while Aleesa Varner had a fractured collarbone.
Drugs and alcohol were not factors in the crash, the CHP said.
The CHP said all three of the girls were wearing their seat belts.
Officer Rob Hearn is investigating the crash.
Email Elizabeth Larson at [email protected] . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.