The third passenger, Juan Morales, 26 of Arvin, who was wearing a seat belt, had “crawled from the vehicle” and was outside it when firefighters arrived, said Byrum. Morales received serious internal injuries, and was transported to Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura.The occupants of the second vehicle, Monique Rodriguez, 21, and Michael Cervantez, 22, both of Fillmore, suffered broken legs and were transported to Santa Paula Hospital. “One of the victims was still entangled in the vehicle” when the SPFD arrived on scene, but they were able to get the second victim out without using the jaws of life.Santa Paula Fire personnel remained on scene until 4:50 a.m. said Byrum. “Engine 82 came out with the light and air unit” to assist the CHP with their investigation, he noted.The stretch of Highway 126 between Santa Paula’s Hallock Drive and Old Telegraph Road in Fillmore has long been known as “Blood Alley” for its high number of fatal accidents. From 1994 to 2004, at least 23 people have died in accidents along the “Blood Alley” portion of the highway.
Mother and daughter killed, four injured in Highway 126 crash
November 02, 2007
Santa Paula News
A mother and her 8-year-old daughter from the Bakersfield area were killed and four others injured in a head-on collision late Tuesday night on Highway 126, according to a California Highway Patrol spokesman.
By Peggy KellySanta Paula TimesA mother and her 8-year-old daughter from the Bakersfield area were killed and four others injured in a head-on collision late Tuesday night on Highway 126, according to a California Highway Patrol spokesman. Alcohol does not appear to be a factor in the crash, which shut down the highway in both directions after the driver of the vehicle drifted over the center divider about a half-mile east of Willard Road and struck an oncoming vehicle.The accident occurred at about 11:35 p.m. when Erica Nunez Mendoza, 25, of Arvin, was driving westbound with three passengers. Her daughter, Brianna Mendoza, who was not wearing a seat belt, died of head trauma. Erica Mendoza, who died from neck trauma, was wearing a seatbelt. According to Santa Paula Fire Captain Jerry Byrum, when the department arrived on scene both Erica Mendoza and Brianna Mendoza were still inside the vehicle, although one was “partially ejected.”The unidentified 1-year-old child, which the CHP stated had been in an improperly installed infant car seat, had been ejected from the vehicle. The baby suffered a skull fracture and was transported to Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles.
