GILROY
– A 27-year-old Gilroy man was killed shortly after 4 o’clock in
the morning Friday on U.S. 101 south of Coyote Creek Golf Drive
when he veered off the west edge of the road and crashed into a
culvert.
GILROY – A 27-year-old Gilroy man was killed shortly after 4 o’clock in the morning Friday on U.S. 101 south of Coyote Creek Golf Drive when he veered off the west edge of the road and crashed into a culvert.
The California Highway Patrol says the victim, who was driving southbound toward Gilroy, may have fallen asleep at the wheel or “suffered a medical condition.” No other vehicle was involved in the accident.
“He drove directly off the shoulder of the road. There was no sign of braking. There was no sign of anything,” CHP spokeswoman Terry Mayes said.
The man’s name could not be released by CHP because they did not know if next of kin had been notified. The coroner’s office could not be reached before press time.
Mayes said there was a witness to the accident, a truck driver who was also headed southbound. The witness told CHP he saw no sign of the driver struggling or reacting to a possible vehicle malfunction.
“The witness said (the driver) looked fine and then suddenly his car went off the road,” Mayes said.
When asked if suicide or alcohol was a possible explanation to the accident, Mayes said it was more likely the death was related to a medical condition based on the height and weight of the man.
The victim’s driver’s license listed him at 5-feet 11-inches tall and 310 pounds.
CHP estimated the driver to be traveling at 60 mph when he went off the road. He was in a 1973 Pontiac Le Mans sport coupe.
A small fire broke out in the car after the crash. Mayes said it had no apparent bearing on the accident.
