Drunk and speeding in stolen truck, Nuevo man plows head-on into family, kills MV father, 23

UPDATED: Monday, June, 11, 2018, 11 p.m.

(See original story and 50 photographs below.)

Riverside County Sheriff-Coroner’s officials have identified a Moreno Valley man killed when an allegedly intoxicated driver in a stolen pickup truck smashed head-on into an SUV in Nuevo early this morning.

Officials identified 23-year-old, Terrel Moore, as the victim who succumbed to his injuries and died at the scene. A coroner’s release indicated Moore was pronounced deceased at 5:52 a.m., just four minutes after the deadly collision was reported.

A woman and juvenile girl were both ejected as the SUV overturned, and the vehicle came to rest on top of the critically injured woman. Both remain hospitalized as of this evening. Their current conditions have not been updated.

Joaquin Alvaradosantana, 29, of Nuevo, was seriously injured in the DUI-related wreck, according to CHP Officer Dan Olivas who explained, “Alvaradosantana will be facing stolen vehicle charges, felony DUI, and vehicular manslaughter charges.”

CHP’s investigation is ongoing.

 

ORIGINAL STORY

NUEVO — One family’s life was forever changed and a father will never return home to his wife and daughter after an allegedly intoxicated man, speeding and driving recklessly in a stolen pickup truck, smashed head-on into the family’s SUV, causing both vehicles to overturn early this morning. The deadly DUI-related wreck happened on the 32000 block of Ramona Expressway, between 5th Street and Resevoir Avenue, in Nuevo.

Both the mother and daughter were critically injured when they were ejected from their overturning SUV; which came to rest upside down, on top of the ejected woman.

The Nuevo man who smashed into the family’s SUV was also seriously injured and remains hospitalized.

The deadly accident created a traffic nightmare for Monday morning commuters traveling along the expressway, which is one of only two main east/west corridors into and through the San Jacinto Valley.

LEADING THE RCNS HEADLINES:

RIVERSIDE: Hit and run driver who killed two, injured third, released within hours of arrest

MENIFEE: Officials investigating recent rash of parking lot scams, demands for “payment”

CORONA: Man driving Corvette was recklessly speeding, passing illegally, just before wreck: CHP

California Highway Patrol and Riverside County Sheriff’s officials, Cal Fire Riverside County firefighters, and American Medical Response medics were dispatched to the scene just before 4:50 a.m., after other motorists and witnesses called 911 to report the double rollover collision.

911 callers told emergency dispatchers a woman and juvenile girl were ejected from the SUV and that the woman was trapped underneath the overturned and destroyed vehicle.

Fifteen firefighters from three engine companies and one truck company responded to the fatal accident scene, Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire spokesperson April Newman explained in an incident report.

When officials arrived they found two destroyed vehicles in front of and near the entrance to John Bootsma Dairy. The vehicles were described as a white Ford Explorer and white GMC Sierra pickup truck.

Both vehicles were still upside down and on their roofs, with the Ford SUV facing east in a shallow ravine off the north side of the roadway and the GMC pickup facing east, within the westbound lanes of traffic.

Vehicle parts, debris, and personal items were scattered across the expressway and blocking both lanes of travel. Several other vehicles had stopped along both sides of the roadway and witnesses were seen providing aid and comfort to the four seriously injured victims, while other motorists slowly worked their way past the accident scene using the southern dirt shoulder.

Firefighters quickly determined multiple people were trapped inside or under the SUV as well as pickup and immediately began setting up the “Jaws of Life” to perform a cut and rescue operation of the surviving victims.

Despite life saving efforts, the driver of the Ford SUV succumbed to his injuries and medical personnel pronounced him deceased at the scene scene.

Officials have not yet publicly identified the victim killed in the DUI wreck, pending further investigation and notification of the man’s family.

Both passengers ejected from the SUV sustained major injuries and were eventually transported to Riverside University Health System’s Trauma Center for further evaluation and treatment.

According to Olivas the driver of the stolen truck, identified as Joaquin Alvaradosantana, 29, of Nuevo, also sustained major injuries and was eventually transported to Inland Valley Medical Center for treatment.

No updates were immediately available for any of the surviving victims.

While firefighters and paramedics tended to the victims of the DUI-related wreck, CHP investigated the cause of the deadly collision.

During their investigation, officers determined Alvaradosantana was driving a stolen pickup truck eastbound on Ramona Expressway, east of 5th St. At the same time, the other driver was traveling westbound in the Ford SUV, approaching the GMC.

“For reasons still under investigation, Alvaradosantana veered to the left and into the westbound lane, directly into the path of the Ford Explorer and the vehicles subsequently collided head-on,” Olivas explained after the accident.

Some witnesses later reported that the allegedly intoxicated driver of the stolen pickup had been speeding and recklessly passing other motorists just before the fatal wreck.

After he is released from the hospital, “Alvaradosantana will be facing stolen vehicle charges, felony DUI, and vehicular manslaughter charges,” according to Olivas. 

During the rescue and accident investigation, Ramona Expressway remained open and vehicles were allowed to slowly drive past the scene of the wreck; with westbound travelers using the eastbound lane and eastbound travelers using the dirt shoulder along the south side of the expressway.

CHP’s collision investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with information regarding this investigation or who witnessed the collision and has not yet provided a statement to CHP is encouraged to contact the California Highway Patrol’s Accident Investigation Unit at (951) 637-8000. Callers can remain anonymous.

Click any image to open full-size gallery.

All photos by William Hayes of OC Hawk News.

 

Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery, 46, recently moved to Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for several other news organizations, including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, The Valley Chronicle and Anza Valley Outlook, as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County and The Mountain Echo in Shasta 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, breaking his back and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s 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.