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Fatal car accident: A 16-year-old girl was killed Friday when a pickup truck struck the side of her car on her way home from Renaissance High School in Watsonville.

• A 16-year-old girl was driving home from school on a rain-slicked road when a full-size pickup truck crashed into the side of her car.

• The teen died at the scene.

• Police said that unsafe speed and slippery roads probably were factors in the accident.

The fatal crash occurred at around 1:20 p.m., according to a Watsonville Patch news report.

California Highway Patrol officer Chris Micheels said the high school student — later identified as Freedom resident Cynthia Madrigal — was driving a late-model Volkswagen Beetle southbound on San Andreas Road at the time of the accident.

The two-lane rural road, which many students use to get back to their homes after school, cuts through strawberry fields and rolling hills. It was wet and slippery because of overnight thunderstorms that soaked Santa Cruz County, according to a report in the Santa Cruz Sentinel.

About two miles south of the high school, near Sunset Beach Road, a northbound black Chevy Silverado pickup truck — driven by a 67-year-old Watsonville man whose identity was withheld — slammed into the passenger side of Madrigal’s small car.

Details of what caused the pickup truck to hit the car were not yet clear. CHP investigators did not suspect that alcohol was involved in the accident, but unsafe speed on the rain-slicked roads probably were factors, Micheels said. CHP officials reminded drivers to slow down during rainy conditions and allow more time for travel.

Madrigal had no pulse when emergency crews arrived at the scene. Paramedics administered CPR but were unable to resuscitate the victim. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

The pickup truck driver sustained minor injuries, Micheels said.

Students at the high school were devastated by the news of Madrigal’s death, principal Artemisa Cortez said. The school will provide grief counseling services for students and staff on Monday, Cortez added.

Pajaro Valley Unified School District superintendent Murry Schekman said Madrigal was well-liked and would be deeply missed.

“The whole school is very sad,” Schekman said.

On Saturday, friends and schoolmates honored Madrigal with flowers and candles placed at the side of the road where the accident occurred.

Watsonville Car Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented car accident victims and their families for more than 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

A 24-year-old mother was struck and killed Tuesday night in a horrific car accident that has Marysville police investigators scrambling for details.

• A Jeep SUV apparently speeded up to get through a green light and then broadsided a Kia Rio.

• A pedestrian was killed in the wreck. The driver of the Kia was airlifted to a hospital with major injuries.

• Police are awaiting toxicology results to determine whether drugs or alcohol were involved.

The fatal pedestrian accident occurred at around 8:40 p.m. at 10th and F streets, according to a report in the Marysville Appeal-Democrat.

A young mother of a 3-year-old girl was killed and at least four other people were hospitalized.

Marysville police Sgt. Chris Sachs said investigators were trying to piece together the evidence to determine exactly how the deadly wreck happened. There was so much debris at the scene that it was difficult to reconstruct the accident.

“This was one of the worst traffic collisions we’ve had in quite a while because of the number of victims and the amount of damaged property,” Sachs said.

Witnesses Jason Christopher and Holland Yeaton, both Marysville residents, were walking north on F Street when they saw a 2007 Jeep Commander — driven by 21-year-old Aaron Furr of Marysville — speed up to get through the green light.

They said the Jeep started to turn onto 10th Street, but then it swerved to avoid hitting pedestrians in the crosswalk and slammed into the side of a 2003 Kia Rio, driven by Martin Fisher of Olivehurst. At some point during the wreck, one of the vehicles crashed into a utility pole. The Appeal-Democrat described the scene:

The utility pole had been sheared in half, with part of it hanging suspended from the lines and part blocking the left-hand turn and middle lanes of eastbound traffic. Splintered wood, broken glass and pieces of metal littered the intersection.

The scene looked like an explosion, as vehicles flipped over and the power line sparked. Christopher and Yeaton immediately ran over to see if they could help anyone.

“One of the pedestrians [Justin O’Neal of Yuba City] was fine,” Christopher told the Appeal-Democrat. “But he kept asking for his fiancee and no one could tell him anything.”

The fiancee, Terany “Tera” Vessey of Olivehurst, died at the scene. Her father, Scott Widing, said police have explained to family members the investigation was in the early stages.

“It looks like someone was speeding,” Widing said. “It looks like someone was just being really negligent, and it’s just sad that she was in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

The victim’s fiance, Justin O’Neal of Yuba City, suffered minor injuries. He was transported to Rideout Memorial Hospital in Marysville, where he was treated and released.

Fisher, who was driving the Kia Rio, suffered major injuries. He was airlifted by helicopter to Sutter Roseville Medical Center, where he was listed in serious condition.

Furr, who was driving the Jeep, sustained minor injuries and also was taken to Rideout, where he was treated and released. His 16-year-old brother, who was a passenger in the Jeep, sustained more serious injuries and was hospitalized but no details about his injuries were available. Police said they believed the teen was in stable condition.

Police did not rule out alcohol or drugs as possible factors in the accident. Toxicology tests were ordered and it can take several weeks for those results, police said.

No arrests were made at the scene. The investigation is ongoing.

Marysville Car Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented car accident victims and their families for more than 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

Car accident: Six people were injured late Friday morning when a Mercedes SUV crashed into a busy Starbucks coffee store in Salinas, slamming into chairs and tables and knocking at least one patron across the cafe.

• Over a dozen people were sipping coffee at a Salinas Starbucks when a Mercedes SUV suddenly crashed through the building.

• Six customers were injured. Three of them were hospitalized with serious injuries.

• No Starbucks employees were hurt, but everybody at the scene was shaken up.

The freak pedestrian accident occurred at around 11:50 a.m., according to a KSBW News report.

A number of people were sitting at outdoor tables in front of the Starbucks when the SUV, driven by a woman whose identity was not released, came speeding up onto the sidewalk area, knocked over tables and chairs, smashed through a glass wall, and plowed into the building.

Shards of glass flew across the room as the SUV drove through the cafe, striking several people who were waiting in line to order drinks. The vehicle finally came to rest when it crashed into the counter.

Salinas resident Sheila Cook, who was sipping coffee in Starbucks’ outdoor sitting area when the SUV crashed through, spoke to KSBW.

“[The SUV] just breezed right by me just as fast as it could go,” Cook said. “The noise was unbelievable.”

“It was like an explosion,” John Klopfenstein told the Salinas Californian. He was inside Starbucks having coffee with a friend and his 8-year-old daughter. “We were sitting over in corner and all of a sudden walls started coming toward us. It was bodies and people and chaos. It was like a bomb went off.”

Klopfenstein told the Californian that one of the women who was struck by the SUV flew across the coffee shop.

About 20 customers and 10 employees were inside when the crash occurred, Salinas Fire Battalion Chief Brett Loomis said.

“This could have been a much much worse event,” Loomis said, “especially if it happened much earlier in the morning — at the rush hour time when there is normally a line out the door.”

Six customers were injured. Three of them — two women and one man — were transported to local hospitals to be treated for moderate injuries. None of the Starbucks employees reported any physical injuries.

The woman who was driving the SUV was visibly distraught. Fire officials declined to say what caused her to crash through the building, but alcohol was not mentioned as a factor. The accident remains under investigation.

Salinas Car Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented pedestrian accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

Car accident: Five people were injured Tuesday night when a minivan drifted across the center line and crashed head-on into another vehicle on Highway 29 near Calistoga.

• A Honda Odyssey minivan veered across the center lines on a rural highway and crashed head-on into an oncoming Honda Accord.

• All five people involved — the driver of the minivan and four occupants of the Accord — were seriously injured.

• The Accord driver and one of his passengers were severely injured and were still in the ICU the following day.

• The three other victims remained hospitalized in fair condition.

The rural highway crash occurred shortly after 9 p.m., according to a report in the Napa Valley Register.

California Highway Patrol officer Jaret Paulson said 60-year-old William Rider of Calistoga was driving a 2008 Honda Odyssey northbound on Highway 29 at the time of the accident.

As the minivan approached Larkmead Lane, it drifted across the double-yellow lines in the center of the road for unknown reasons and crashed head-on into an oncoming 2000 Honda Accord.

The Accord was driven by 39-year-old Refugio Espinoza of Glen Allen, Paulson said. Three Sonoma residents — 32-year-old Vitalina Rosas, 31-year-old Ignacio Cortes, and 37-year-old Alfredo Bermudez — were riding in the car with Espinoza.

All five people involved in the accident — Rider was traveling alone — were injured and hospitalized at Queen of the Valley Medical Center in Napa.

Espinoza and Rosas both suffered major injuries, Paulson said. Cortes was listed in serious condition at the intensive care unit on Wednesday, hospital spokesperson Vanessa deGier said. No information about Espinoza’s condition was immediately available.

Rider, Rosas, and Bermudez suffered injuries that CHP officers described as moderate. They were still in the hospital in fair condition on Wednesday, deGier said.

The CHP is still investigating the accident. Alcohol does not appear to be a factor, Paulson said.

Rural Highway Accident Statistics

Rural highways can be very dangerous when there are only two lanes. Traffic often travels at full freeway speeds, but there is no physical barrier between oncoming vehicles.

Only 23 percent of the U.S. population lives in rural areas, but 57 percent of all motor vehicle accident fatalities occur on rural roads, according to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration(NHTSA).

The NHTSA’s latest figures show that the fatality rate per vehicle miles traveled was 2.5 times higher in rural areas than in urban areas.

Calistoga Car Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented car accident victims and their families for more than 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

A Bakersfield police officer suffered a head injury Sunday night when a drunk driver slammed into his patrol car while he was on duty.

• A police officer stopped to investigate a hit-and-run crash and was hit by a drunk driver.

• The officer suffered a moderate head injury and the drunk driver’s passenger was hospitalized with major injuries.

• The drunk driver was arrested at the scene.

The drunk driving accident occurred at the scene of an earlier hit-and-run crash on southbound Golden State Avenue — State Route 204 — south of the Kern River, according to a KBAK News report.

Officer Rex Davenport was sitting inside his patrol car, which was parked in the fast lane with its emergency lights flashing. Traffic was proceeding slowly past the accident scene.

California Highway Patrol officer Kenny Hagerman said 25-year-old Christopher Neumann was farther back in that lane of slow traffic when he pulled his SUV into the fast lane and sped up to 65 miles per hour.

Neumann’s SUV slammed into Davenport’s patrol car and then struck a Honda Accord as well. Police administered a field sobriety test, which Neumann failed. CHP officers arrested him for drunk driving.

Davenport suffered moderate injuries was taken to Bakersfield Memorial Hospital to be treated. He was released later but was not able to return to duty.

Neumann’s passenger, 25-year-old Kristin McGowen, was not wearing a seat belt and suffered major injuries. She also was taken to Bakersfield Memorial Hospital, where she remained hospitalized.

Neither Nuemann nor the driver of the Accord were injured, the CHP said.

The accident was particularly upsetting to the local community because Officer Davenport — whose brother was killed by a drunk driver — is highly active in the award-winning “A Life Interrupted” program, which works with youth to prevent drunk driving and deadly car accidents.

A local Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) advocate, Carla Pearson, lost her son in 2002 to a drunk driver. She is one of the many people in the community who were horrified that Davenport almost became a statistic Sunday night.

“He’s out trying o keep the streets safe and an alleged drunk driver comes barreling down the road and hits him,” she told KGET News, the local NBC News affiliate.

“I hope that no one is severely hurt at the end of the day, and I hope [Neumann] gets it (the dangers of drunk driving),” Pearson said.

Drunk Driving Accident Statistics

Almost 11,000 people die every year in drunk driving car accidents on U.S. roads, according to federal government statistics published by the non-profit group Alcohol Alert. Drunk driving deaths account for more than a third of all U.S. traffic fatalities.

Many people believe drunk drivers fare better than their victims on the road, but that is not true. Almost two-thirds of those who are killed in alcohol-impaired driving crashes are drunk drivers.

Drunk drivers involved in fatal crashes are typically not first-time offenders. Statistics show they are eight times more likely to have a prior drunk driving conviction than other drivers involved in fatal accidents.

More than half of drunk drivers involved in fatal accidents have levels of alcohol in their blood that are twice the legal limit — or more.

Bakersfield Drunk Driving Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented drunk driving accident victims for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.