Kansas man dies at hospital after crash with wrong-way driver, troopers say

A man died after a Saturday morning crash with a wrong-way driver in southwest Kansas, state troopers said.

Emergency crews were called at around 11:31 a.m. to a wreck on U.S. 50, about 4 miles west of Garden City in Finney County, the Kansas Highway Patrol said in a crash report. Three people were taken to St. Catherine Hospital in Garden City, and two were taken to Wesley Medical Center in Wichita. One of the people taken to St. Catherine died.

Investigators determined a 2000 GMC Sierra was eastbound in the westbound lanes of the highway as a 2006 Pontiac G6 was westbound in the westbound lanes. The driver of the Pontiac lost control while making an avoidance maneuver, troopers said, and the GMC crashed into the passenger side of the Pontiac.

Par Lay, 47, of Garden City, was a passenger in the Pontiac. He was pronounced dead at St. Catherine, the crash report states.

The driver of the Pontiac was taken to Wesley Medical Center with a suspected serious injury. He was identified as Saine Taw, 37, of Garden City.

Three people in the GMC, all from Wichita Falls, Texas, were hurt, the crash report states. Driver Mariano Rodriguez, 22, was taken to St. Catherine with a suspected serious injury. Passenger Luz Huerta Perez, 21, was taken to St. Catherine was a suspected minor injury. Passenger Ricardo Alvardo, 12, was taken to Wesley Medical Center with a suspected serious injury.

This story was originally published July 28, 2019 at 2:06 PM.