Mario Morales, 27, was killed in a multi-vehicle crash Tuesday in Oxnard, in the city’s first fatal collision of 2017.
The crash occurred at around noon on North Rose Avenue and Cesar Chavez Drive, and began when Morales’ Nissan 350Z, travelling north on Rose, apparently veered into southbound lanes and hit a commercial pickup truck, which then caught fire and hit a Honda Civic.
A fourth vehicle was also involved in the pileup, but its driver declined to be taken to the hospital, and several nearby vehicles were hit with debris.
Morales was pronounced dead at the scene. The drivers of the commercial pickup and of the Civic, 45-year-old Reynaldo Lugo and 21-year-old Andre Gutierrez, both of Oxnard, were hospitalized with mild to moderate injuries, but both are in stable condition.
Large sections of North Rose Avenue were immediately closed following the crash, but have since reopened.
The crash continues to be investigated, and it is unclear if alcohol or drugs were a factor.
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