Burney pharmacist ID’d after deadly Bella Vista crash

March 29, 2020 Trevor Montgomery

UPDATED: Wednesday, April 1, 11:55 a.m.

See Original Story below.

BELLA VISTA, Calif. — Authorities have identified a man killed Saturday evening in the Bella Vista area, March 28, after his vehicle soared off SR-99E and crashed into several trees.

The victim killed in the crash, who has since been identified as 43-year-old, Tilak Madhukar Baviskar, of Yuba City, worked as a pharmacist at Burney Safeway and was returning home to his family after work when the fatal accident happened. He is survived by his wife Vandana, 7-year-old son Yog, and 4-year-old daughter Sanika.

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According to CHP and witnesses, Baviskar was traveling westbound on SR-299E near Sugar Pine Conservation Camp when he lost control of his Toyota Prius while attempting to negotiate a sharp curve along the winding mountain roadway.

As Baviskar’s car careened across the road it nearly struck an oncoming motorist before soaring off the highway and rolling down an embankment, where his car struck at least two large oak trees before coming to rest upside down.

43-year-old, Tilak Madhukar Baviskar, of Yuba City, pictured here with his family, was returning home to his wife and children after spending the day working as a pharmacist at Burney Safeway when the fatal accident happened. Baviskar family/GoFundMe photos

The motorist nearly involved in the collision, who resides in the Montgomery Creek / Round Mountain area and has requested to remain anonymous, later told CHP and others that when Baviskar lost control of his Toyota he had been driving too fast for the road conditions and nearly struck her vehicle head-on before careening off the highway.

After trying to render aid to the mortally injured driver but getting no response from him, the woman who witnessed the crash drove about a mile from the scene of the accident so she could call 911 to report the crash and ask friends for help.

Area resident Lisa Strickland later told SCNS that in the minutes after the crash, the woman who witnessed the collision sought help from her and her husband; who raced to the scene of the accident to see if they could help Baviskar.

“My husband Roger raced to the scene and after finding the wreck, went down the hillside and checked the driver’s pulse,” Lisa explained; saying, “Sadly, he found the man did not have a pulse and had already passed away.”

“The car was so crushed that Roger couldn’t tell if other passengers were in there,” Strickland described.

As it turned out, Baviskar was the sole-occupant of the vehicle.

Baviskar’s family and friends have since created a GoFundMe account to raise necessary funds to offset burial costs and other expenses. The fundraiser had raised more than $3,500 as of this update.

Original Story: One dead after car soars off 299E near Bella Vista

BELLA VISTA, Calif. — Authorities are investigating after a man died in a solo-vehicle, rollover traffic collision in the Bella Vista area early yesterday evening, Saturday, March 28.

The deadly crash happened along a winding section of SR-299E in the area of MM 43.3, near Sugar Pine Conservation Camp and about one mile east of Ingot, according to California Highway Patrol and witnesses.

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CHP and other emergency personnel were first alerted to the fatal accident shortly before 6 p.m., after an area resident called 911 to report having found the crash. The 911 caller reported a speeding vehicle had careened off the highway after nearly colliding with another motorist traveling through the canyon.

The 911 callers reported they had already made their way to the wrecked vehicle and found the driver unconscious and unresponsive and that the man did not have a pulse.

A man was killed yesterday evening after losing control of his vehicle and soaring off SR-299E in Bella Vista. Photo provided anonymously to SCNS

When officials arrived they found a heavily damaged, gold-colored Toyota Prius down an embankment adjacent the highway. The small, overturned vehicle, which one witness later described as “so crushed she couldn’t tell if any passengers were inside”, had struck at least two large trees after soaring off the highway.

Officials quickly confirmed the driver had already succumbed to his injuries and passed away at the scene. The victim’s name has not yet been publicly released, pending further investigation and notification of the man’s family, according to a CHP representative.

Area resident Lisa Strickland later shared with SCNS what she and her husband had seen in the crash’s aftermath; saying they first learned about the accident when a friend told them that she was traveling east on the dangerous section of highway when the westbound Toyota came out of a curve while traveling too fast and nearly struck her vehicle.

The driver of the Toyota then lost control of his vehicle, which careened across the lanes of travel and flew off the roadway and down the embankment. As the Toyota overturned down the embankment it smashed into a large oak tree before hitting a second oak tree and coming to rest on its roof.

The other driver nearly involved in the accident, who resides in the Montgomery Creek / Round Mountain area, immediately stopped and tried to render aid to the mortally injured man, but after finding him unresponsive drove a mile to where she could call 911 and report the crash to CHP and ask for the Strickland’s help.

“The car was so crushed that Roger couldn’t tell if other passengers were in there,” Strickland described.

As it turned out, the driver was the sole-occupant of the vehicle.

“I tell people to slow down all the time but they just don’t listen,” Strickland later told SCNS. “People are always in such a hurry to get where they are going and they just don’t take into consideration how dangerous that curve and section of the highway is.”

The wrecked Toyota was later towed from the scene and CHP is continuing to investigate the cause of the crash and whether alcohol or drug intoxication were contributing factors in the deadly accident.

This is a developing story that will be updated as new information is available.

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Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery, 48, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, (the now defunct) Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; 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 29 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 16 grandchildren.