This red Dodge sedan was involved in head-on collision with a Ford F-150 pickup at around 4:30 p.m. Monday, July 18, 2011, on Lakeshore Drive in Clearlake, Calif. Three people were reportedly transported to area hospitals. Photo by Elizabeth Hoskins.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – A late afternoon crash on Monday sent three people to hospitals around the region.

The crash occurred at around 4:30 p.m., causing the roadway to be shut down, according to reports from the scene.

Two vehicles – a red Dodge sedan and a white Ford F-150 pickup with a camper shell – hit head-on, according to Clearlake resident Elizabeth Hoskins, who witnessed the crash scene afterward.

Radio reports indicated there were three crash victims, with one – a female driver – not breathing.

One of the vehicles also had reportedly been on fire but Clearlake Police officers arriving on scene put it out.

Air ambulances were summoned with the pilots directed to set down at a landing zone set up at Redbud Park.

A REACH air ambulance was reported to be on the way to Children's Hospital & Research Center of Oakland just before 5 p.m., according to radio reports.

Radio traffic indicated that a Cal Star air ambulance landed just minutes afterward to transport another patient to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital. Another patient was said to be on the way to St. Helena Hospital Clearlake via ground ambulance.

Lake County Fire Protection District had transported the victims out and terminated its incident command at the scene by 5:15 p.m., according to a radio statement.

Five Clearlake Police units were on the scene, along with two tow trucks, investigating the collision, Hoskins said.

She said the red vehicle was mangled, with the white pickup not sustaining as much damage.

Information on the crash victims – including their names and conditions – was not immediately available, as police were continuing their investigation.

Updates will be posted as new information becomes available.

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Police and fire officials were investigating the crash scene late Monday afternoon. Photo courtesy of Samantha Taylor.