December 29, 2014 - On Monday, December 29, 2014 at approximately 9:09 A.M. Haoyao Chen, 21, of Woodland, California was driving a 2014 Honda Civic at an unsafe rate of speed eastbound on Highway 140 about a mile past the Yosemite Bug Hostel. Valery Tenyotkin, 34, of San Francisco, California was driving a 2014 Mini Cooper westbound on Highway 140 with passenger Julia Tenyotkin, 24 also from San Francisco. As Mr. Chen came around a sharp right hand curve he failed to control his vehicle in his lane and traveled over the solid double line into the path of the Mini Cooper.  

The vehicles collided head on and blocked both lanes of traffic for over an hour. Three of the four passengers in the Honda Civic sustained minor to major injuries (one of the passengers received a broken leg) and were airlifted to area trauma centers. The driver and passenger of the Mini Cooper suffered minor bruising and abrasions. CHP Officer Romine is currently investigating the accident but it is not believed alcohol or drugs were a factor in the accident.

Mariposa Area CHP Public Information Officer, Steven Lewis said “This is another example that seatbelts save lives. Regular seat belt use is the single most effective way for people to reduce fatalities and injuries in traffic collisions. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that over 1,200 Californian lives are saved every year due to regular seat belt usage.”