A Wednesday night drive through Madera County turned fatal for four Merced County residents when a pickup truck blew through a stop sign. The crash claimed the life of a 13-year-old boy and three adult men riding inside a small SUV.
Young Pedro Chavez was just 13 years old and attended Weaver Middle School in Merced. He was riding in the vehicle alongside three adult companions when the collision happened around 8:40 p.m.
The three adults killed in the wreck were 36-year-old Gerardo Ramirez Aguilar, 42-year-old Pedro Chavez Garcia, and 52-year-old Cayetano Beyza-Mendoza. All four victims lived in Merced County and were traveling together in a Honda CR-V.
The group was heading northbound on Road 9 through rural farmland. Road conditions were clear as their Honda CR-V approached the intersection at Avenue 21.
At the exact same time, a GMC Sierra pickup carrying two people was traveling along Avenue 21. Officers reported that the driver of the GMC failed to stop at the posted stop sign controlling the intersection.
The heavy pickup struck the driver’s side of the Honda CR-V at full speed. The force of the broadside impact killed four of the five people inside the Honda before emergency crews arrived at the scene.
A fifth passenger sitting inside the Honda survived the collision with severe injuries. First responders rushed the survivor to a nearby trauma hospital for emergency medical care.
News of the fatal crash spread to Weaver Middle School on Thursday morning. School administrators brought in grief counselors to help students and staff process the sudden loss of their 13-year-old classmate.
California Highway Patrol officers remain at work investigating why the GMC driver missed the stop sign. State troopers have not yet stated whether speed, alcohol, or phone distraction played a role in the crash.
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