Local woman, 30, ID’d after fatal crash into I-215 retaining wall in Riverside
UPDATED: Monday, Feb. 21, 10:19 a.m., With release of Coroner’s information.
Originally Published: Wednesday, Feb. 16, 6:42 a.m.
RIVERSIDE, Calif., — Authorities say excessive speed and failure to stop at a posted stop sign are suspected as contributing factors in a fatal crash that killed a motorist when she plowed at high speed into a freeway retaining wall in Riverside late Monday evening, Feb. 14.
The deadly accident, which left her passenger shaken but uninjured, happened underneath Interstate 215 at the Martin Luther King Boulevard onramp/offramp.
LEADING THE RCNS HEADLINES:
CHP: Traveling more than 100 mph on I-15 and not wearing seatbelts, Wildomar men fatally ejected in rollover collision
Banning officer resigns after arrested for sending obscene images to minor, using minor to create sexually explicit matter
CHP: Mother, 27, and child, 3, were not wearing seatbelts when fatally ejected in Thousand Palms rollover crash
$2 million bail each for Orangecrest parents accused of ongoing, years-long sexual abuse of son and daughter
Motorcyclist, 33, ID after fatal solo-vehicle crash into Corona tree
City of Riverside police and fire personnel, along with CHP – Riverside, AMR, and other emergency responders, were dispatched to the scene just after 11 p.m. after receiving reports of a solo-vehicle crash into a sound retaining wall with two occupants trapped inside the vehicle.
When officials arrived, they found a dark-colored sedan with heavy front-end damage against a wall at the T-intersection that forces vehicles to head northbound on the 215 Freeway.
Fire and rescue personnel work at the scene of a solo-vehicle crash that killed a Riverside woman on Valentine’s Day. Lone Wolf News and Media / OnScene TV photo
Firefighters updated that witnesses and good Samaritans had already helped pull the passenger from the wrecked car, and that a critically injured woman remained trapped.
Although firefighters began an immediate cut and rescue operation, they soon determined the woman had already succumbed to her injuries.
After learning the driver had passed away, the clearly shaken and distraught passenger from the vehicle was observed crying out for the woman and calling out her name between sobs; however, it was not immediately clear how the two knew each other or if the pair were related.
The Riverside County Sheriff – Coroner’s Office has since identified Susan Edge, 30, of Riverside, as the woman killed in the crash. A Coroner’s release indicated she was pronounced deceased at 11:31 p.m.
During their subsequent investigation, officers determined Edge had been traveling eastbound on Martin Luther King Boulevard when she failed to slow or stop at the intersection and plowed head-on into the wall.
Evidence at the scene suggested she may not have hit her brakes before the impact, and that she hit the wall at high-speed.
Officials have not yet said if alcohol and/or drug intoxication were suspected as contributing factors in the deadly crash.
“We’re investigating it, but that’s all we can say at this time,” Riverside PD spokesman, Officer Ryan Railsback later said.
Click any image to open full-size gallery.
Lone Wolf News and Media / OnScene TV photos above, video below.
Contact the writer: [email protected]
Trevor Montgomery, 51, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and operates Riverside County News Source (RCNS) and Shasta County News Source (SCNS), which act as stringer-organizations for other mainstream media organizations throughout the two regions they serve.
Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers Valley News, Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; the Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County; and Mountain Echo in Shasta County. He is also a regular contributor to Thin Blue Line TV and Law Enforcement News Network and has had his stories featured on news stations throughout the Southern California and North State regions.
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 30 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 18 grandchildren.