An oncoming driver drifts across the road after blowing out a
tire near Reno
By Lori Stuenkel
Gilroy – Ron Dominguez spent the last five years cleaning up his life. The Gilroy native stayed clean and sober, kept a steady job, and planned to marry his long-time girlfriend Alyssa Calimpong.
But the young man was killed in a highway crash Friday morning, as he and his fiancee traveled with two friends to Reno, where Dominguez planned a surprise wedding for his fiancee.
The crash occurred on Highway 70 near Quincy, about 80 miles west of Reno. Dominguez was driving his three passengers in a minivan on the two-lane highway when an oncoming driver drifted into his lane after blowing out a tire, according to a friend of the couple.
All three passengers were airlifted to Enloe Medical Center in Chico. Calimpong, who was sitting in the van’s middle row of seats, suffered a broken leg and facial injuries, including a broken jaw. She was in stable condition Monday, according to hospital nurses.
Mike Hubbard, who was to be Dominguez’s best man, was sitting in the front passenger seat and suffered multiple leg fractures. He was released Monday following surgery.
Mark Fries, who was sitting in the rear row of seats, suffered major internal injuries and was listed in critical condition Monday.
Friends said Dominguez was an “awesome guy” who worked hard during the past five years to become a responsible caretaker for Calimpong and their two young sons.
“He wanted to grow before he married (Calimpong),” said Lorraine Mastroieni. “They had both just had five years sober, and everything was going good for him.”
Mastroieni’s boyfriend, Danny Mendoza, was Dominguez’s first sponsor in Narcotics Anonymous. Dominguez’s age could not be confirmed, but Mastroieni said he was in his mid-20s.
Dominguez started working at brazing company Bodycote Thermal Processing in Fremont about five years ago, and promoted several times since then.
“He was doing very well. He was put into a lead position not too long ago on his shift … he was probably getting very close to becoming a supervisor himself,” said Kevin Paler, a shift supervisor at Bodycote. “It was just tragic, what happened. He came from a pretty hard life, from what I understand, and he turned it all around and started making his life a lot better.”
When Mastroieni and Mendoza visited their injured friends this weekend, Calimpong showed strength despite her loss and learning of Dominguez’s surprise wedding plans.
She communicated to Mastroieni by writing on an erasable board, because she is unable to talk due to her injuries, Mastroieni said.
“She wrote down that she’s OK and not to worry. She wanted us to know that she knew about Ron, but she’s OK,” Mastroieni said. “She says, ‘I have to be strong for my kids. … I feel him here, and he’s watching us’.”
