Two injured in 100′ rollover down Soboba Road embankment

A CHP officer searches for additional victims and registration paperwork inside the destroyed SUV. Eddie George / Hemet News

UPDATED 6/2/2016 With additional information and photographs from the scene.

 

SAN JACINTO – Two men were injured when the driver of an SUV lost control and rolled numerous times down a 100-foot embankment on Soboba Road near Lake Park Road, June 1, according to a CHP official. Both men were reportedly ejected from the SUV. The accident occurred one and one-half miles northwest of the Soboba Casino.

Both victims sustained moderate injuries according to CHP Officer Austin.

Riverside County emergency communications dispatchers were first notified about the rollover accident at 11:12 p.m., when a person called 911 to report they had driven upon a man who was laying in the middle of Soboba Road. The caller told dispatchers the man was covered in blood and not moving.

About one minute later another motorist traveling the opposite direction on Soboba Road called 911 to report a rollover traffic accident in the same area.

Emergency first responders rushed to the location to provide medical aid to the two injured men.

The first deputy arrived at the location within minutes of the initially dispatched call and confirmed an SUV had rolled down an embankment, ejecting both of the vehicle’s occupants. The deputy advised dispatchers he had located one victim who was bleeding from the head laying in the roadway.

The victim told the deputy there had been a second man in the vehicle at the time of the wreck; however the deputy was not able to find the second occupant from the destroyed SUV.

A second deputy arrived about one minute after the first and immediately began searching the ravine area for the vehicle and the second occupant. He quickly located the destroyed SUV. Within moments, he reported finding the second victim down the steep ravine. The man was located about ten minutes after the crash was initially reported.

Firefighters and AMR personnel arrived and immediately began to evaluate and treat the two injured victims before transporting them to a local area hospital.

A preliminary investigation conducted by CHP officers determined the driver of the SUV had drifted off the paved roadway onto a dirt shoulder just before the accident occurred. The driver attempted to regain control and over-corrected, leading to the rollover, according to Austin.

The SUV came to rest on its side, about 100 feet down a steep embankment, according to Austin. Blood found on the front windshield that was shattered outward led Austin to surmise at least one of the vehicle’s occupants had possibly been ejected through the front windshield during the violent wreck.

“At this time we do not believe alcohol or drug intoxication were factors in this accident,” Austin said.

After the victims were transported from the scene of the accident, deputies and officers surveyed the area, finding vehicle parts, debris, and personal items strewn about the roadway and down the steep embankment where the SUV had rolled down.

The barely recognizable SUV was eventually pulled from the ravine and taken to a local tow yard.

 

Anyone with information about or who witnessed the accident is encouraged to contact the CHP San Gorgonio Station at (951) 769-2000.

Videography by Eddie George / Hemet News

 

This is a developing story. Additional information will be added as it becomes available.

 

Contact the writer: [email protected]