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Two people were killed in car crashes over the weekend in separate parts of Las Cruces.
The first occurred on Jan. 31 around 4:53 p.m. at the Interstate 10 ramp near Avenida de Mesilla at a construction zone. The crash closed all eastbound lanes, which reopened sometime later.
According to a spokesperson from New Mexico State Police, investigators believe a semi-truck caused a chain reaction crash when the driver entered a construction zone and rear-ended another vehicle.
The driver of the rear-ended vehicle, 35-year-old Josie Cardona of El Paso, Texas, was pronounced dead on the scene by the Office of the Medical Investigator. The spokesperson was waiting to confirm whether criminal charges would be filed. Two passenger vehicles and two semi-trucks were involved in the crash.
A Las Cruces spokesperson said some two dozen firefighters were called to the scene, and four people were taken to the hospital.
The second crash occurred on Feb. 2 around 9 p.m. on Valley Drive near the West Picacho Avenue intersection. Las Cruces police said a 2024 black Nissan Armada sped north on Valley Drive when it rear-ended a silver Chevrolet Malibu. The Malibu then entered the southbound lanes of traffic and sideswiped an orange Ford Mustang.
Meanwhile, the Armada went off the roadway and struck a building, killing the driver, 54-year-old Michael James Massa, from Bellflower, California.
The driver of the Malibu and two occupants of the Mustang were transported to area hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries.
The crash also closed a portion of Valley Drive while police investigated, but it has since reopened.
