SALEM — Police are investigating a serious crash last night on Lafayette Street near the Marblehead line, a stretch of road that has seen numerous crashes.

The two-car crash happened shortly after 10:30 p.m. near the Raymond Road intersection. Both drivers were taken to the hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

"It's another significant crash on this part of the road," said Salem police Sgt. Kate Stephens at the scene last night.

As midnight approached, Salem police and detectives were examining two crash scenes resulting from the accident, since the two Hondas that collided ended up about 50 yards from each other.

Police, fire crews and at least two ambulances responded to the scene and, within minutes, rescue personnel were calling for hydraulic extrication tools as at least one motorist was trapped in a vehicle.

Shortly thereafter, rescuers requested a MedFlight medical helicopter to airlift a female patient to Boston. The Salem State College baseball field and a ball field at nearby Forest River Park were identified as possible landing zones for the helicopter.

However, because of an expected 20-minute wait in the airlift response time, Stephens said Atlantic Ambulance rushed the woman to an unspecified Boston hospital.

The crash milieu was a portrait of twisted metal.

The first car, an older-model Honda, had its front, driver's-side wheel torn off. That car's male driver was trapped inside and had to be freed by Salem firefighters using the extrication tools. He was taken to Salem Hospital.

The second car, a newer-model Honda, crashed into a stone wall on Raymond Road. The female driver wasn't trapped inside as police and firefighters arrived, but she was unconscious, according to Salem fire Deputy Chief Brian Harrington.

This is the latest in a series of serious accidents along the road.

In July 2008, a motorcyclist fleeing police was killed when he crashed into the seawall. A Salem High senior was killed in a car accident on the road the year before.