LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — A 40-year-old man and a 65-year-old woman were killed in a multi-vehicle crash in the east valley on Christmas Eve, according to information from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
Police said the crash happened on Charleston Boulevard west of Nellis Boulevard around 1:25 p.m.
Witnesses initially told police the driver of a Mazda 3 swerved to avoid a jaywalking pedestrian. In an updated statement about the collision, police said the driver ran a red light at the intersection of Charleston and Nellis and "for unknown reasons...failed to maintain its travel lane."
Police say the Mazda veered across the median and into opposing traffic, where it hit a 2008 Toyota Sienna, a 2002 Ford F-150 and a 2013 Cadillac STX, eventually coming to a stop on the south sidewalk of Charleston.
"The driver and passenger of the Mazda sustained mortal injuries and were pronounced deceased at the scene," according to police.
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Five people in the other three cars sustained minor injuries and were taken in ambulances to University Medical Center's trauma center. Two others sustained minor injuries but declined to be taken to a hospital, police noted.
Charleston Boulevard was shut down between Nellis and Arlington Street while detectives investigated the crash.
The deaths of the Mazda's driver and passenger mark the 150th and 151st traffic-related fatalities in LVMPD's jurisdiction this year.
Police say the crash remains under investigation.
