A driver was trying to evade Alaska State Troopers when his car collided head-on with another vehicle Sunday evening on the Seward Highway near Seward, authorities said.
The Seward Police Department contacted troopers just after 5 p.m. to report officers were pursuing a blue 2006 Toyota Corolla that had been seen driving erratically and had nearly struck pedestrians, troopers said. The driver eluded Seward police, and troopers said they received a report of a similar driver near Mile 4 of the Seward Highway.
A trooper tried but failed to stop the car near Mile 10, troopers said. Troopers began chasing the Toyota “due to the extreme danger that the driver presented to the other drivers on the Seward Highway,” troopers said.
The fleeing car then collided with a southbound vehicle near Mile 13, according to troopers.
The Toyota driver and a passenger were ejected, troopers said. The men were flown to an Anchorage hospital with serious injuries. The driver of the other vehicle was also injured but in stable condition when transported to a hospital in Seward, troopers said. No one else was in that vehicle.
The highway was closed for about six hours as troopers documented the scene and cleared the damaged vehicles. Charges were not immediately filed, but troopers spokesman Austin McDaniel said the investigation is continuing.
Names of the people involved were not immediately made public.
Troopers asked anyone who had to take evasive action to avoid the Toyota, or anyone who had photos or video of the vehicle being driven recklessly, to call 907-262-4453.