Head-on Collision Kills Unrestrained Driver

FENTON – This morning, at 12:28 a.m., Louisiana State Police Troop D responded to a two vehicle head-on crash on U.S. Highway 165 just north of Louisiana Highway 101 (about 5 miles south of Fenton) in Jefferson Davis Parish that claimed the life of a Rayne man and injured two other people. Preliminary investigation revealed that 30-year-old Brandon T. Bertrand of Rayne was traveling north in the southbound inside lane of U.S. 165 when the 2000 Mitsubishi Galant he was driving struck a 2009 Nissan Altima driven by 30-year-old Chantel Lynn of Lake Charles head-on. Lynn had been traveling south in the southbound inside lane approaching LA 101. Bertrand, who was not wearing a seat belt, sustained fatal injuries as a result of the crash. A passenger in Bertrand’s car was transported to an area hospital with minor injuries. Lynn was transported to an area hospital with moderate injuries. A standard toxicology sample was obtained from both drivers and will be submitted to the Louisiana State Police Crime Lab for analysis. The crash remains under investigation. Last year in Louisiana, sixty-five percent of vehicle occupants that were killed in a crash were not properly restrained. Buckle Up Louisiana. Every trip. Every time. Troop D troopers have investigated 28 fatal crashes in 2010, resulting in 32 fatalities.