Troopers from Louisiana State Police Troop I were called out at around 1:30 Thursday morning to investigate a fatal crash.

Two people died and three people were taken to a local hospital with critical injuries.

As far as what happened this morning, Troop I Spokesman Trooper Thomas Gossen says the driver of a pick up truck, Jasper Morrison Foster of Maurice, hit the back of a vehicle as both vehicles were driving southbound on US Highway 167 near Lawrence Road.

The trooper says investigated determined Foster was driving at a high rate of speed.

Both of the vehicles then left the roadway and flipped over. Foster and his passenger, 22-year-old Matthew Wayne Landry of Lafayette, were both not wearing seat belts. Both men were pronounced dead at the scene by the Vermilion Parish Coroner's Office.

What caused the pickup truck to hit the back of the other vehicle is still under investigation. Officials do not yet have an answer to this aspect of the fatal crash.

Three people in the vehicle that were hit from behind were taken to a hospital and are said to be in critical condition. Gossen says no one in this vehicle was wearing a seat belt either.

As is routine in a fatal crash case, blood samples were taken for analysis at the State Police Crime Lab.

In a press release, Gossen had the following to say about crashes,

Louisiana State Police would like to remind motorists to slow down, buckle up, and put the phone down. Take this time to make a New Year's resolution to be safer behind the wheel. Crash forces do not care who you are or what you drive. The faster you drive, the great the risk of serious injury or death and not wearing a seat belt greatly increases that risk. This crash is an example of possibly walking away compared to being carried away from a crash.

While we are just five days into the new year, troopers in Acadiana have already investigated two fatal crashes that have led to three deaths.

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