SLO County man dead after truck plummeted 300 feet over the side of Highway 166, CHP says

Authorities on Tuesday released the name of the man who was killed on Monday when his pickup truck plunged over the side of Highway 166 east of Santa Maria and ended up in the Cuyama River.

The victim was Juan Albinedaduarte, 54, of Grover Beach, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Albinedaduarte was westbound on Highway 166 west of Sierra Madre Road in a 2007 Nissan Armada at about 8:30 a.m. when he rounded a curve in the roadway, the CHP said.

The vehicle then left the roadway and crossed a dirt shoulder before plummeting 300 feet down a steep hillside.

The Nissan overturned several times before coming to rest in the river at the bottom of the canyon, the CHP said.

Albinedaduarte, the sole occupant, was declared dead at the scene.

The Santa Barbara County Search & Rescue team responded to the incident to recover the victim’s body and assisted the tow company with the extraction of the vehicle, according to team member Kevin Hess.

The fatal crash remained under investigation by the CHP.