1 confirmed dead in fatal car crash, fire near SLO County winery
One person was killed after a vehicle crashed into a fence and caught fire next to a winery in rural San Luis Obispo County late Monday afternoon.
The vehicle collided with a fence near the B&E Vineyard at 10000 Creston Road, north of Highway 41, around 4:20 p.m., according to the California Highway Patrol Traffic Incident Information Page. The vehicle was reportedly on fire at the time.
The driver, identified as Lucio Ornelas Avina, 34, of Paso Robles, was driving a 2005 Ford Escape northbound on Creston Road, south of Camp 8 Road, at an unsafe speed, CHP said in a news release on Tuesday.
Due to speeding, the vehicle veered off the road, causing the driver to lose control. The car crashed into an oil pipe fence on the right side of the road and caught fire, CHP said in the release.
Witnesses reported the vehicle “quickly became fully engulfed in flames,” the release said.
Around 4:36 p.m., officers arriving on the scene reported the vehicle was “stuck on top of a 6-foot-tall fence,” according to emergency scanner traffic.
The driver was unable to exit the vehicle and was found dead at the scene shortly after. CHP, the Coroner’s Office, Cal Fire and the Paso Robles Fire Department responded to the scene.
The identity of the driver is unknown at this time. Identification by the San Luis Obispo Coroner’s Office is pending.
It is also unknown if alcohol and/or drugs were a factor. The crash is pending further investigation by the CHP Templeton Area office.
This story was originally published February 3, 2025 at 5:59 PM.
CORRECTION: This story has been updated with the identity of the driver who died.
