A passenger was dead and a driver was hospitalized after a suspected drunk driving crash early Monday when a vehicle went off of Highway 99 and struck a tree near Galt in Sacramento County.
The fatal crash was reported shortly before 4 a.m. Monday along Highway 99 at the Mingo Road exit-ramp, according to the California Highway Patrol.
A red Hyundai Santa Fe, a small sport utility vehicle, was heading north on the highway at an unknown speed when it went off the road, the CHP South Sacramento Area Office announced in a news release.
The Hyundai went over the dirt and grass median, crossed the Mingo Road on-ramp and crashed into the tree, the CHP said. Officers arrived and found the red SUV with major damage.
Firefighters and medics provided medical aid to the injured passenger and pulled the injured driver from the driver’s seat.
Both the driver and passenger were taken by ambulance to Kaiser Medical Center in south Sacramento.
About 20 minutes after the single-vehicle crash was reported, the passenger was pronounced dead at the hospital, the CHP said. The driver suffered major injuries in the crash and was receiving treatment at the hospital.
The CHP said alcohol is believed to have been a factor in this fatal crash.
The Sacramento County Coroner’s Office will release the passenger’s name and age after the family is notified. The CHP did not release any further information about the two people in Monday’s vehicle crash.
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Rosalio Ahumada writes breaking news stories related to crime and public safety for The Sacramento Bee. He speaks Spanish fluently and has worked as a news reporter in the Central Valley since 2004.