Photo by Elliott Cohen for SCVNews.com. Click image to enlarge.

Two people were transported to the hospital, one with critical injuries, following a head-on collision that occurred at about 3 p.m. Friday on Rye Canyon Road in the Valencia Industrial Center.

A suspected drunk driver was traveling the wrong way on Rye Canyon Road when he crashed head-on into another vehicle, SCV Sheriff’s Lt. Bill Weiss said.

According to witnesses at the scene, the male driver of a silver Mercury Milan sedan was traveling eastbound in westbound lanes when he collided with black Ford Explorer, driven by a man who was going the right direction. Witnesses estimated the vehicles were traveling 45 mph to 55 mph at the time of the crash.

The wrong-way driver sustained critical injuries. The driver of the Explorer sustained minor injuries. Both were transported to the hospital. Investigators at the scene said both drivers were expected to survive.

Rye Canyon Road was closed to westbound traffic between Avenue Crocker and Avenue Stanford after the crash, forcing home-bound commuters to find alternate routes to Interstate 5.

As of 8:30 p.m., the wrong-way driver remained in critical condition.

UPDATE 9/21/2001: Sheriff officials say driver was not DUI, as deputies initially suspected -> http://scvnews.com/?p=19326