Two men were killed in separate Columbia fatal motor vehicle accidents early in the month of December.

The first accident occurred on Dec.1 on Interstate 70. The victim’s Ford Explorer hit a semi-truck on the highway. The driver, a 46-year-old man, was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol said the accident occurred at the 122-mile marker on the westbound side of the roadway.

The Explorer driver was reportedly trying to pass the semi-truck when his vehicle clipped the front, sending his vehicle off the left side of the highway. It hit a guardrail, overturned, hit a median cable barrier and landed on the eastbound side of the road on its top.

According to law enforcement, the victim was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash. Accident investigators said that he was trying to pass the semi-truck, which was in the passing lane. The truck was driven by a 55-year-old man from Jacksonville, Florida.

The Major Crash Investigation Unit is still determining what factors led to the crash. These include possible intoxicated driving

In the second fatal accident in a matter of hours, a 26-year-old man was killed early on the morning of Dec. 2. He was driving his 1997 Chevrolet Suburban on Rollins Road near Westridge Drive.

The victim was headed westbound when his vehicle left the roadway, crossed a sidewalk and both lanes of traffic and then hit a tree on a resident’s lawn before coming to a stop on its side.

The man was not wearing a sea tbelt at the time of the accident, according to police, and was ejected from the Suburban. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators are also looking into possible intoxicated driving in this accident.

Experienced attorneys can help victims and surviving family members understand their legal rights following a motor vehicle accident.

Source: Columbia Daily Tribune, “Crashes on I-70, Rollins Road kill two,” The Tribune’s Staff, Dec. 03, 2016