Woman ejected, fatally crushed, after truck rolls off SR-60
UPDATED: Thursday, May 16, 10:45 a.m.
BEAUMONT — Officials have identified a woman who died when she was partially ejected and crushed by her overturning pickup truck, last Wednesday, May 8. The deadly crash happened on SR-60, just east of Jack Rabbit Trail, about halfway between Gilman Springs Rd. and Lamb Canyon/SR-79.
Riverside County Sheriff-Coroner officials have since identified the victim as Michelle Hector-Batson, 60, of Desert Hot Springs. A coroner’s release indicated the victim succumbed to her injuries at the scene and was pronounced deceased at 1:01 p.m.
Original Story
BEAUMONT — An unrestrained driver was partially ejected and died after being crushed by her own pickup truck after it drifted from the eastbound 60 Freeway and overturned earlier this afternoon, Wednesday, May 8. The fatal, solo-vehicle accident happened just east of Jack Rabbit Trail, about halfway between Gilman Springs Rd. and Lamb Canyon/SR-79.
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CHP, Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire, and other emergency personnel, were dispatched to the rollover crash around 12:48 p.m. 911 callers reported a white, full-size pickup truck had drifted off the freeway and onto the shoulder, where it rolled off the highway, through a fence, and came to rest upside down on an adjacent frontage road.
While officials were racing to the scene, 911 callers updated that the victim had been critically injured, but was still alive, and requested emergency personnel expedite their response to the scene.
When officials arrived moments later, they found the overturned white, 2004 Ford F-250 on its roof, with several witnesses and good Samaritans surrounding the vehicle trying to provide aid and comfort to the sole occupant, described as a woman in her 50’s.
Within minutes of their arrival, officials determined the victim had succumbed to her injuries and had passed away. She was subsequently pronounced deceased at the scene and coroner’s were requested to respond to the location.
A woman in her 50’s was partially ejected and fatally crushed by her own truck as it overturned off the 60 Freeway in Beaumont. CHP photo
CHP interviewed several motorists who witnessed the rollover crash, who described that just before the accident the driver, who remains unidentified as of this report, was traveling with the flow of traffic in the number one lane at about 55 mph.
For an unknown reason, as the woman was driving her pickup suddenly began to drift from the number one lane into the number two lane, and then onto the paved shoulder of the freeway.
“The truck continued drifting south and overturned down a small embankment where it collided with the perimeter chain link fence,” CHP Officer Darren Meyer later reported.
As the truck began rolling, “the unrestrained driver was partially ejected onto the roadway and crushed by the overturned vehicle,” explained Meyer.
“There were no passengers in the vehicle and no other vehicles were involved,” Meyer continued. “The city of residence for the driver has yet to be determined.”
CalTrans was later summoned to the scene to repair a section of fencing that was destroyed by the truck as it overturned off the freeway and onto the nearby frontage road.
Distraction, medical conditions and/or alcohol and drug intoxication have not been ruled out as possible contributing factors as the cause of this collision and CHP’s investigation is ongoing, according to Meyer.
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Trevor Montgomery, 47, moved last year to the Intermountain area of 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 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.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 28 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 15 – but soon to be 16 – grandchildren.