CALIFORNIA TOWNSHIP, MI – A man was seriously injured when his vehicle struck a deer and then hit a tree.

The accident happened Monday night just north of the Indiana and Michigan state line.

Michigan State Police Mattheau Combs, age 28 of Edon, Ohio, was injured in the crash. Emergency response teams were called in just before 7:30 PM on South Fremont Road near Copeland Road.

Firefighters from Fremont had to free Combs from the vehicle. Efforts to transport Combs by a medical helicopter were unsuccessful.

He was taken by Life Care Ambulance to Parkview Regional Medical Center in Fort Wayne. His injuries were described by the State Police as “life threatening.”