CHP identifies 3 people killed in wrong-way car crash on Highway 46 in SLO County
The California Highway Patrol has identified the three people killed in a wrong-way, triple-vehicle crash on Sunday night on Highway 46.
The three were all from towns in the San Joaquin Valley.
The crash killed 24-year-old Cutler resident Rosalinda Bucio, 27-year-old Reedley resident Francisco Polinasainz and 32-year-old Sanger resident Yvette Guzman, the CHP announced on Tuesday.
It occurred just before 10:30 p.m. near Shandon, according to a Monday news release from California Highway Patrol.
The driver who caused the crash, 30-year-old Saundra Foutz of Paso Robles, was heading west in a 2021 Mercedes in the eastbound lane of the highway when she hit a 2022 Honda head on, the CHP said.
A second eastbound vehicle, a 2015 Honda, was closely following the first car and piled up on the initial crash. The driver and two passengers of the first Honda suffered fatal injuries and were transported to the county Coroner’s Office, according to the CHP report.
Two others sustained major injuries in the crash, including Foutz, who was driving the wrong way on the highway, and the fourth person in the first Honda, 28-year-old Carlos Quinonez of Orange Cove. Both were immediately transported to hospitals for emergency medical treatment.
The driver of third car, 38-year-old Jess Lopez of Bakersfield, sustained minor injuries and was not transported for medical care.
The CHP was still investigating the cause of the crash.
This story was originally published July 30, 2024 at 4:17 PM.
