Pasco crash injures two Hernando residents

Two Hernando residents were airlifted to Regional Medical Center Bayonet Point after a Pasco County crash Sunday morning.

Paul Ryan Smith, 28, was driving his 2000 Nissan north on U.S. 41, south of Bowman Road, before 11:25 a.m., the Florida Highway Patrol said. Smith, of Tampa, lost control of his vehicle on the wet road, rotated and ended up in a southbound lane of the highway, troopers said.

Troopers said he then collided with a vehicle being driven by Sandra Maria Martinez, 49, who was traveling south, troopers said.

Smith’s passenger, Robert Alen Peterson, 20, of Brooksville, was ejected onto the roadway, the highway patrol said.

Martinez, of Spring Hill, and Peterson were both taken to Bayonet Point, while Smith was treated and released at the scene, troopers said.