Head-on Pacheco Pass Highway crash closes roadway for hours
By Lori Stuenkel
Gilroy – A head-on crash on Pacheco Pass Highway Friday morning killed one man and injured 10 others, including two families on their way to Disneyland.
The 38-year-old Santa Clara man, whose identity was not released, was declared dead at the scene of the crash east of Gilroy that involved three cars and closed U.S. Highway 152 for nearly three hours during the morning commute, according to the California Highway Patrol.
A 28-year-old Los Angeles woman who officers believe caused the 6:36am collision remained in critical condition with head trauma Friday evening. Her name also was not released, pending notification of her family.
The woman was driving westbound in a gray 1990 Toyota Camry near San Felipe Road when she crossed the double-yellow lines.
“At some point, she began drifting down onto the right shoulder, and then she drifted right across, into the oncoming lane,” CHP Officer Chris Armstrong said.
Officers on the scene said it appeared she may have fallen asleep. Visibility was not a factor, nor was drunken driving, Armstrong said.
The woman struck a white 1990 Toyota Camry that was traveling westbound with six people inside, killing the driver.
Officers could not determine the speed of either car, Armstrong said, and the road is fairly straight in that area west of Casa De Fruta.
Neither driver had a chance to brake or take evasive action, based on the absence of pre-impact skids, according to Sgt. Dave Hill.
“They went headlight to headlight,” Hill said.
A third car rear-ended the white Camry after it was struck, causing minor injuries to four people inside, including the driver, Zhousheng He, 46, of San Jose.
When CHP officers arrived on scene, both lanes of the road were blocked. Until about 9:15am, westbound traffic was diverted to Highway 156 and eastbound traffic was diverted to San Felipe Road.
Lifeflight airlifted the 28-year-old driver to Stanford University Medical Center with head trauma.
All five surviving passengers of the white Camry were transported to nearby trauma centers. They were two families, from Santa Clara and Sunnyvale, on their way to Disneyland.
The driver was wearing his seat belt, but it was unclear if the passengers – including two 6-year-olds – were wearing theirs, Armstrong said.
At the scene, Hill said some of the passengers who had been riding in the rear seat were found in the front seat. Officers made no related arrests.
Thirty-two-year-old Marisol Martinez, of Santa Clara, was taken to San Jose Regional Medical Center with moderate trauma to her extremities, Armstrong said. Two 6-year-old girls were taken to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, one with major trauma to her extremities and the other with unknown major injuries. Transito Cameros, 35, of Sunnyvale, was taken to Valley Medical with major trauma to her lower extremities, and 25-year-old Omar Banos, also of Sunnyvale, was taken to Stanford, also with major trauma to his lower extremities.
All four people in the third car, a gold 1996 Toyota Camry, were wearing seat belts, Armstrong said. The driver and his passengers Shaofeng He, 48, a 5-year-old girl and a 71-year-old woman, were all transported by ambulance to Saint Louise Regional Hospital with complaints of pain.
As officers arrived at the scene, they called for additional responders. Seven units from the Gilroy Fire Department, South County/California Department of Forestry, and San Benito County Fire Department responded.
CHP officers are continuing to investigate the incident.
Chief Photographer James M. Mohs contributed to this report.
