Driver reportedly lost control and crashed into pole
Morgan Hill – An 18-year-old Morgan Hill man was killed Sunday night when the car he was driving slammed into a utility pole in west Morgan Hill.
Brandon Castellanos was a 2005 Live Oak High School graduate.
The area where the accident occurred – on DeWitt Avenue north of Edmundson Avenue – is in unincorporated Morgan Hill.
California Highway Patrol responded to the 11:44pm call. According to the report, Castellanos was traveling southbound in a new Nissan 350Z at a high rate of speed. When he reached the “S-curve,” he apparently lost control and ran off the road. The Nissan crashed into a utility pole, and though he was wearing a seatbelt, he was pronounced dead at the scene from his injuries.
It is unclear if alcohol was a factor in the accident, which is still under investigation, according to CHP spokesman Chris Armstrong.
There were no witnesses to the accident, Armstrong said, so it is not clear how fast Castellanos was driving. Officers can conduct a skid test to come up with an approximate speed, but in this case, with no other vehicle or individuals involved, he said it would not likely be necessary.
“Whether he was going 50mph or 70mph, it really doesn’t make a difference,” he said. “There won’t be any prosecution. But he was clearly going fast. If he had been going the posted speed, he should have had no trouble maneuvering through the curve.”
The vehicle’s air bags deployed, Armstrong added. He said he did not know the nature of Castellanos’ injuries.
Funeral plans had not been finalized by press time, according to Johnson Funeral Home in Morgan Hill. A memorial service is planned, but details were unavailable.
The utility pole was damaged, and power lines were down in the roadway. The downed lines also started a small grass fire, which was extinguished by California Department of Forestry firefighters.
Jeff Smith, PG&E spokesman, said the road would be closed to through traffic until about 3pm Monday to replace the utility pole and repair the wires. Power was restored to most residents by 2am.
