A woman is dead after a crash with a deer sent her skidding into the path of an oncoming semi truck in California on Tuesday morning.
The accident happened on March 8th at around 6:25 a.m. in Nevada County.
According to CBS Sacramento, a 48-year-old woman was driving a pickup northbound along Highway 49 at Alta Sierra Drive when she swerved to avoid a deer but hit it anyway. The combination of the swerve plus the force of the impact with the animal sent the pickup skidding into the southbound lanes and into the path of an oncoming semi truck hauling medical supplies.
FINAL UPDATE: All lanes of HWY 49 reopened around 10 a.m. @NevadaCountyCA @PlacerCA @CALFIRENEU @CHPgv @CHPAuburn https://t.co/GtggDcXTcR
— Caltrans District 3 (@CaltransDist3) March 8, 2022
Neither driver was able to avoid the collision and the pickup and tractor trailer collided, ejecting the motorist and sending the pickup back into the northbound lanes. The semi truck then veered into the east embankment before skidding back onto the highway and coming to a rest across the roadway.
The pickup driver was pronounced dead on scene. The truck driver, Roberto Ordaz-Moralez, suffered only minor injuries in the crash. The California Highway Patrol also reports that “the impact ruptured one of the semi-truck’s fuel tanks, causing approximately 100 gallons of diesel fuel to spill into a ditch on the east side of Highway 49.”
The incident is still under investigation but the wreckage and spilled fuel has since been cleared and the roadway has been reopened.