2 dead after car flips near Hobbs

HOBBS, N.M. (AP) - Police say two people are dead and one is injured after their car veered off State Road 18 near Hobbs and flipped end-over-end.

New Mexico state police say excessive speed and failure by some occupants to use seatbelts contributed to Saturday afternoon's crash and its severity.

Police say that when the car went off the road, 19-year-old driver Johnny Garcia tried to regain the roadway but it went into a skid, hit loose dirt, and flipped over three and one-half times.

The car's three occupants, all from Hobbs, were airlifted to University Medical Center in Lubbock, Texas. Garcia and 23-year-old passenger Jeremy Turner were pronounced dead, while 19-year-old passenger Mario Molina underwent treatment.

The state police say the injured Molina was the only one wearing a seatbelt; the two others had been ejected from the vehicle.