A fatal car crash and a SLO County teen stars in new TV show. Today’s top stories

San Luis Obispo County covered a range of news Monday, with stories on a deadly crash, an offshore oil platform fire and a dismissed defamation case.

Here’s a quick look at the headlines making news across the Central Coast.

• Paso Robles man dies in crash: A 48-year-old Paso Robles man died, and the driver suffered major injuries after a 2015 Chevrolet Camaro crossed both lanes of Nacimiento Lake Drive and slammed into a tree Sunday evening, with driver Joseph Mitchell Pate, 44, arrested on suspicion of DUI.
• Defamation suit dismissed: A judge dismissed a defamation case against CalCoastNews reporter Karen Velie under California’s anti-SLAPP laws, ruling that plaintiff Jody Bernat failed to show how Velie’s use of the word “alias” caused her damage or injury.
• Are waves destabilizing Big Sur cliffs? A new study published in the AGU Earth and Space Science Journal found that wave action erodes the base of Big Sur cliffs at an average rate of about 2 centimeters per year, destabilizing upper cliffs and priming them for landslides during storms.
• Oil platform fire: All 26 crew members were safely evacuated from Platform Habitat, an offshore oil platform 7.8 miles off the Santa Barbara coast, after a fire broke out Monday morning and was contained by 1:32 p.m. New candidate enters Paso race: Paso Robles resident Robert Simoni announced his candidacy for the District 2 City Council seat currently held by Chris Bausch, running on a platform of smart growth, road improvements, fiscal responsibility and preserving open space.
• Teen stars in show: 19-year-old Arroyo Grande actress Sofia Rosinsky stars as Lulu Littlejohn in the new Peacock series “The Miniature Wife” alongside Matthew Macfadyen and Elizabeth Banks, with the 10-episode show released April 9.
• New attracts at water park: Ravine Waterpark in Paso Robles is celebrating 20 years of business with a May 17 kickoff event featuring a transformed Splash Lagoon, new waterslides and a splash-free adult retreat called “The Cove” opening mid-summer.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.

This story was originally published May 11, 2026 at 6:03 PM with the headline "A fatal car crash and a SLO County teen stars in new TV show. Today’s top stories."