Farmington, NM : Three people are dead in two car crash on Tuesday October 23 2014.3

At least three people are dead after two separate car crashes Tuesday evening. Shortly before 5 p.m., two people were killed in a wreck involving a semitrailer and a passenger car near the intersection of N.M. Highway 371 and County Road 6001, according to San Juan County Sheriff's Office Sgt. Scott Facka. The two people, whose names have not been released, were declared dead at the scene, Facak said. A third person, whose condition was not known, was taken to San Juan Regional Medical Center. The southbound lanes of the highway were closed as crews investigated on Tuesday night. The lanes were still closed as of 7:30 p.m. The crash site was located on a curve south of the highway's intersection with Navajo Route 36. A series of fatal crashes in that area have been reported in the past few years. A memorial cross and flowers were visible near the site of Tuesday's crash. Later on Tuesday evening at about 7:30 p.m., officers located a car crash near milemarker 7 on N.M. Highway 574 between Aztec and La Plata, according to police dispatchers. San Juan County Sheriff's Office Lt. Cory Tanner said at least one person died in that crash, and New Mexico State Police are investigating the incident. Emmanuel Gutierrez, a spokesman for state police, confirmed there was a fatal crash, but he had no other details. State police officers were still at the scene of the crash, as of 8:45 p.m. Tuesday night. The crash on N.M. Highway 371 was the second fatal wreck in less than two months that involved a semitrailer. In September, a semitrailer pulling out of a gas station on U.S. Highway 550 south of Bloomfield struck a pick-up truck. Another semitrailer tried to avoid the crash by braking, but it jackknifed and its trailer hit a passenger car. Three family members were killed in that crash. Source : At least three people killed in two car crashes Tuesday evening