A 23-year-old Santa Cruz man was killed in a head-on collision near Aptos on Saturday.
Luke Thomas Salem was westbound on Freedom Boulevard around 7:30 a.m. Aug. 17 in a 1966 Chrysler Newport, according to the California Highway Patrol. As he was approaching McDonald Road, he collided with an eastbound 2017 Honda CRV.
Salem suffered major injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene, the CHP reported. The Honda’s driver, a 49-year-old man, suffered minor injuries and was taken to a hospital.
Salem attended Harbor High School and Cabrillo College, and played football for both schools.
In a social media post Monday afternoon to a Cabrillo College Football account, account administrators mourned the loss of “one of our Hawk family members.”
“Luke’s love, compassion, and support for his teammates are already missed. His smile & kind soul will never be forgotten,” the post read. “If we all treated each other the way Luke treated us, there’s no doubt the world would be a better place.”
Investigators had not yet made a finding on whether drugs or alcohol was a factor in the crash.
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Source: www.mercurynews.com