An elderly man died and a passenger suffered major injuries Thursday morning after a sedan collided with a southbound pickup truck near Highway 43 and Cairo Avenue, in a crash that officers say may have been worsened by dense morning fog. The pickup driver stayed at the scene and is cooperating with investigators as the circumstances of the fatal wreck are sorted out.
The crash happened just after 6:30 a.m. Thursday, according to ABC30 Fresno, which reported the collision as occurring in Kings County. A separate report from KMPH described the same Thursday-morning wreck at Highway 43 and Cairo Avenue as happening in Fresno County, and the two outlets have not reconciled that discrepancy.
Officers told ABC30 that the sedan driver pulled out in front of a pickup truck that was traveling south on Highway 43, and the pickup struck the left side of the sedan. The station reported that the sedan driver, described by officers as an elderly man, died from his injuries. KMPH identified the deceased driver as the 80-year-old operator of a Kia, who the station said was pronounced dead at the scene — a detail that has not been confirmed elsewhere.
Passenger Hospitalized, Pickup Driver Cooperating
A passenger riding in the sedan was taken to the hospital with major injuries, per the station's report. The pickup driver remained at the scene afterward and is cooperating with authorities, according to the same account. A CHP incident feed separately logged a two-vehicle traffic collision at 6:41 a.m. Thursday, describing it as a sedan versus a blue or black Nissan pickup, according to the CHP Fatal Accident Feed.
Officers said early-morning fog may have contributed to the crash, the outlet reported. No further details on the investigation's progress or any potential citations have been released.
Highway 43 Has Seen Other Fog-Related Crashes
This is not the first time fog has been blamed for trouble on Highway 43 near Laton. Back in January, a section of State Route 43 just east of Laton was closed after four semi-trucks crashed into each other while traveling in dense morning fog, ABC30 reported at the time; it was unknown whether anyone was hurt in that pileup. The small number of reports on the corridor does not establish a broader pattern of crashes tied to fog.
In a separate incident on the same highway in Hanford, a bus and semi-truck collision sent 10 of the 15 people aboard the bus to local hospitals with injuries ranging from minor to moderate, according to ABC30's archives. Crews kept that stretch of road shut down until at least 7 p.m. while they investigated and cleaned up the scene.
