Edgar Contreras-Argote of Guadalupe died early July 17 in a single-car rollover on Brown Road just outside Santa Maria.
The 22-year-old was pronounced dead at 6:26 a.m. when county fire, American Medical Response, California Highway Patrol, and the Santa Maria Fire Department responded to the incident, according to county Fire Capt. Dave Zaniboni. Contreras-Argote was trapped in his 2002 Pontiac Firebird, which was found lying on its roof beside the road.
CHP Officer Mike Gruver said it is still unclear why Contreras-Argote lost control of the vehicle, which was headed east on Brown Road before it veered to the north, causing the rollover. Because there were no witnesses to the crash, Gruver said CHP does not know how fast the car was moving.
Gruver said Contreras-Argote was killed when he was partially ejected from the rolling car. He was not wearing a seatbelt.
Drugs or alcohol don’t appear to be a factor in the crash, according to a CHP press release, and the weather at the time of the incident was clear and warm. Although there have been other fatal accidents on Brown Road in the past, CHP Officer Alex Ruiz said it appears to be a safe place to drive.
“It’s just your basic rural road,” Ruiz said.
This article appears in Jul 20-27, 2017.