WILDOMAR: Local resident killed in solo-vehicle, rollover accident

WILDOMAR – A Wildomar resident died in a single-vehicle, rollover wreck Thursday evening, May 19. The fatal crash happened near the intersection of Palomar and Wesley Streets in Wildomar, according to Riverside County Sheriff, Coroner and Fire officials.

Coroner’s officials later identified the victim and sole-occupant of the vehicle as 31-year-old, Ramon Castaneda. According to coroner’s officials, Castaneda was found in an open field, east of Palomar Street and about 135 feet south of Wesley Street. He died about twenty minutes after the accident, at 11:02 p.m.

Deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Wildomar Police Station and other emergency first responders were dispatched to the scene of the deadly crash at 10:41 p.m., after other motorists and witnesses called 911 to report the major accident.

Deputies arrived within minutes and found “the driver…lying on the ground next to the vehicle,” Riverside Sheriff’s Sergeant Nathan Kaas said in a written press release after the deadly crash. Both the wrecked vehicle and victim were found in a dirt field. It was not immediately known if Castaneda was wearing a seat belt at the time of the fatal rollover.

Castaneda had sustained major, traumatic injuries requiring immediate life-saving efforts.

Medical personnel immediately began to provide medical aid to the mortally injured victim; however, Castaneda succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Public Information Officer Jody Hagemann.

Members of the Lake Elsinore Police Department’s Traffic Team responded to the scene of the rollover accident and assumed the investigation.

Witnesses to the crash told investigating deputies that the vehicle was “driving erratically” northbound on Palomar Street just before the wreck, said Kass.

For an unknown reason, which Traffic Team members are still investigating, the vehicle veered off the two-lane road in a rural area with large, open fields on three of four corners at the intersection. The vehicle began rolling before coming to rest in a field on the southwest corner of the intersection.

Castaneda was reportedly ejected from the vehicle as it rolled over.

Deputies investigating the cause of the deadly wreck called for the temporary closure of sections of Palomar Street between Wesley Street and Ione Lane

The road was closed for several hours, but was reportedly re-opened before the morning commuter crush.

Anyone with information about this case is encouraged to contact Deputy Nicole Roberge of the Lake Elsinore Police Department Traffic Team at 951-245-3300, or after hours at (951) 776-1099. Callers can refer to incident file number WI171390064 and can remain anonymous. Citizens may also submit a tip using the Sheriff’s CrimeTips online form.

 

Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News and Anza Valley Outlook and also writes for Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg and breaking his back in an off-duty accident.

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center and Lake Elsinore Station, along with other locations.