Passenger Killed in Solo Vehicle Accident Near Snelling
MERCED COUNTY - A 50-year-old woman died Thursday afternoon in a solo-vehicle accident near Snelling, the Merced Sun Star reported. The victim was a passenger seated in the right rear of the vehicle, which was travelling southbound on La Grange Road, north of Merced Falls Road shortly before 2 p.m. on April 28, 2011. According to news reports, the driver, June F. Robinson, 58, failed to negotiate the curve in the road north of Merced Falls Road. The vehicle travelled onto the west shoulder and went 50 feet down an embankment and crashed with a tree. The victim, who was not identified, died at the scene of the crash. The driver, and another passenger, Jannie C Perez, 53, of Hayward, suffered minor injuries. All occupants were reportedly wearing seat belts and alcohol or drugs were not believed to be a factor. The cause of the fatal La Grange Road accident remains under investigation.
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SUNNYVALE - A 54-year-old Sunnyvale woman was struck and killed last Monday night while crossing Fair Oaks Avenue in Sunnyvale, Mercury News reported. The woman, identified by the Santa Clara County Coroner's Office as Abeba Robinson, was crossing Fair Oaks Avenue just north of El Camino Real when she was struck by a small sedan. Robinson died of her injuries at the scene of the accident, which was reported at 8:23 p.m. on Monday, April 18, 2011. The driver of the vehicle that struck Robinson stayed at the scene. Alcohol was not believed to be a factor in the fatal Sunnyvale pedestrian accident. The incident is being investigated by the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety's Major Accident Investigation Team. Anyone who witnessed the accident is asked to call investigators at 408-730-7109.
ALBANY - A Ford Explorer SUV rollover tragically killed a 48-year-old Oakland man Monday morning in Alameda County, Mercury News reported. The accident was reported on eastbound Interstate 80, just west of Buchanan Street, at about 10 a.m. on Monday, April 18, 2011. The victim, identified by the Alameda County coroner's bureau as Napoleon Quintero, was driving a white Ford Explorer with his wife and two children when for unknown reasons, he lost control of the vehicle, causing the SUV to roll multiple times. Quintero's wife suffered a broken leg, and his two children suffered minor to moderate injuries.
MARIPOSA - A 75-year-old Milpitas man was tragically killed in a collision Saturday morning on Highway 140 near Catheys Valley, the Merced Sun Star reported. The victim, Ewart Speer, was driving his 1931 Ford Model A eastbound on Highway 140, while Celise Brandon, 35, of Mariposa, was stopped in the westbound lane of Highway 140 waiting to turn left not Catheys Valley Park. William Ashworth, 62, of Mariposa, apparently did not notice Brandon's stopped Honda Pilot and rear-ended it with his Ford F-250. The impact of the rear-end collision forced the Pilot into eastbound traffic where it was struck by the Ford Model A. Speer was ejected from his vehicle and was fatally injured. Brandon suffered minor injuries and was taken to Fremont Hospital. Ashworth was not hurt. 
ALPAUGH - A 27-year-old man tragically died Monday afternoon in a solo vehicle crash on Highway 43 near Alpaugh, the Fresno Bee reported. The accident occurred north of Avenue 56 at about 2 p.m. The driver, who was not identified, reportedly drifted off the right side of the roadway, and then overcorrected and lost control of the 2006 Ford Fusion. The man was taken to Delano Medical Center where he died of his injuries. The cause of the fatal April 11th Tulare County crash remains under investigation by the CHP. 
RED BLUFF -- A 6-year-old Red Bluff girl suffered major injuries in a four-vehicle crash Saturday afternoon in Tehama County, the Record-Searchlight reported. The accident was reported at 12:45 p.m. on April 2, 2011, on Highway 99E just south of Patterson Road. The young girl was a passenger in a 1999 Subuaru driven northbound on Highway 99E by Jerod Gilbert, 24, of Red Bluff. When Gilbert slowed the vehicle to make a left turn onto Patterson road, he was rear-ended by a 1999 Ford driven by Pablo Vasquez, 31, of Gerber. The impact of the rear-end collision caused Gilbert's vehicle to spin into southbound traffic where it was struck by a car driven by John Koga, 19, of Palo Cedro. A 29-year-old Paradise woman, Kristen Horst, was able to avoid the collision, but lost control of her 2010 Subaru and ended up in a grassy field. 
WILLOWS - A head-on collision Tuesday night killed three people in Glenn County, the Contra Costa Times and Willows Journal reported. The accident occurred on Highway 99W, north of the intersection with County Road 39. According to news reports, at about 9:35 p.m. on Tuesday, April 5, Erik Ortega, 26, of Orland, was driving a 1991 Ford Taurus southbound on the highway when he reportedly allowed his vehicle to drift into northbound lanes. The Ford collided head-on with a 2007 Hyundai Elantra driven by Melissa M. Ellithorp, 20, of Willows. Both Ortega and Ellithorp were killed in the crash. A passenger in Ellithorp's Hyundai, Nicolina Joann Milani, 19, of Glenn, also died. A second passenger in the Hyundai, Emily D Ellithorp, 31, of Willows, sustained major injuries and was taken to Enloe Medical Center in Chico. 
