Highway 101 crash kills Santa Maria woman, injures 3 others near Santa Margarita

A Santa Maria woman died after the SUV she was riding in lost control on northbound Highway 101, just south of Highway 58, according a news release from the CHP.

The driver, 49-year-old Octavio Toldeo Hernandez of Santa Maria, lost control of the Lincoln Navigator while traveling at 65 mph in the No. 1 lane for unknown reasons and hit a tree near the shoulder, the CHP said.

Maria Guadalupe Toldeo, 51, was seated in the second row of the vehicle, which carried a total of five people, the agency said.

She was wearing a seatbelt when the crash occurred but sustained major injuries, the CHP said. Guadlupe Toldeo was pronounced dead at the scene.

Toledo Hernandez and the three other passengers were transported to Sierra Vista Medical Center in San Luis Obispo, the CHP said, but only three suffered injuries.

The crash came as heavy rain showers swept across San Luis Obispo County. The National Weather Service issued a flood advisory for the county until Sunday afternoon.

Heavy showers and possible thunderstorms were expected to flood roadways across North County, including Paso Robles, Atascadero and Shandon.

This story was originally published December 8, 2019 at 12:39 PM.