Two women were killed in a head-on crash Wednesday night on U.S. Highway 160 just east of Gem Village, according to the Colorado State Patrol.

Drugs and alcohol are suspected, said Cpl. Jonathan Silver, with the State Patrol.

The crash occurred about 10:20 p.m. when a brown 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee traveling eastbound toward Bayfield crossed the center line and collided with a 2007 Toyota Rav4, according to a crash report.

The Jeep was being driven by Elfreida J. Kolossa, 56, of Durango. Kolossa was pronounced dead shortly after 11 p.m. at Mercy Hospital.

The Toyota was being driven by a 16-year-old girl who was working on her nighttime-driving hours for her driver’s license, Silver said. Her mother, Erin S. Brown, 47, of Durango, was in the passenger seat.

The mother was killed in the crash, but the daughter escaped with “moderate” injuries, according to the crash report.

Silver said the mother and daughter used to live in Pagosa Springs but had recently moved to Durango. The daughter was still attending a youth group in Pagosa, and they were returning to Durango after attending the youth group, Silver said.

“The daughter was trying to get her night driving hours in and saw the vehicle in her lane and swerved to try and avoid it,” he said.

Kolossa had apparently just left The Billy Goat Saloon in Gem Village, which is less than a mile from the crash site, Silver said. Troopers suspect she was under the influence of alcohol and marijuana at the time of the crash, he said. She also had an open container of alcohol in the vehicle.

“Unfortunately, we’re seeing too much of that,” he said.

Kolossa also was not wearing a seat belt, he said.

“It’s possible that she could have survived the crash if she had been using it,” Silver said.

The 16-year-old girl and her mother were wearing seat belts.

The girl was taken by ambulance to Mercy Hospital. The hospital declined to release the girl’s condition because she is a minor.

Excessive speed is not suspected of playing a role in the crash, Silver said. In fact, the 16-year-old driver was able to react and slow down before impact, he said.

Highway 160 was closed for at least two hours while law enforcement investigated and cleared the crash scene.

shane@durangoherald.com