2 drivers killed in turnpike crash today

BRACEVILLE

Two people were killed in a two-vehicle crash on the Ohio Turnpike in Braceville Township at about 1:43 a.m. today.

Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers said a Honda Accord was eastbound in the westbound lane and struck a westbound Toyota Camry head-on. The Honda went off the left side of the road and the Camry went off the right side, striking a guardrail.

Both the Honda driver, Gerald Steven Bemis, 50, of Frederick, Md., and the Camry driver, Guilberta Rivera Ortiz, 42, of Cleveland were pronounced dead at the scene by the Trumbull County coroner. A passenger in the Camry suffered minor injuries and was transported to Trumbull Regional Medical Center in Warren.

The OSHP report said alcohol is believed to be a factor in the crash, which remains under investigation.