News - Local - South County

Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008

Santa Maria man dies at Oceano Dunes

It’s not yet known what caused Sunday’s wreck; he’s the fourth to die at the state park this year

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A 26-year-old Santa Maria man died in a single-vehicle accident near Competition Hill at the Oceano Dunes on Sunday evening.

It was the fourth death at the Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area this year.

Rangers and lifeguards were called to an area just west of Competition Hill at 7:48 p.m., where they found Joaquin Florentino Perez Monreal unresponsive, according to parks officials.

Perez Monreal was pronounced dead a short time later by a county coroner.

The circumstances surrounding the crash are still being investigated, and the Sheriff’s Department Coroner Division is trying to determine the cause of death.

There is no indication that alcohol was involved, according to state parks Superintendent Andy Zilke.

Of ficials at the Oceano park, which has about 1,500 acres open to off-road riding, say that on average there are about 300 accidents a year at the Dunes and typically a few vehicle-related deaths.

From 2000 through 2007, 18 people have died because of vehicle-related accidents at the Dunes, according to state parks data. That’s an average of 2.25 per year. In January, Renee Delynn Sherer, 24, of Oceano was hit by a truck and killed.

Duane Allen Blake, 39, of Cupertino in the Bay Area, died in February after losing control of his motorcycle.

In March, Lucas Adam Stelzriede of Byron, in Contra Costa County, also died of injuries suffered in a motorcycle crash at the Dunes.