June 9 Los Banos motorcycle accident

On June 9 Andrew Maloney was seriously injured when he crashed his motorcycle on Highway 165 in Los Banos. Reportedly Maloney was riding south on Highway 165 near Pioneer Road when Amie Chick, who was driving north on Highway 165, turned left in front of his motorcycle. Maloney was unable to stop in time and rammed into the side of Chick's Jeep. Maloney was critically injured as a result of the accident. Chick was talking on her phone at the time of the accident and was arrested for driving under the influence. She was later found to be under the influence of alcohol and cannabis.

June 9 wrongful death accident in Los Banos

On June 9 a woman was killed when her car drifted into oncoming traffic in Los Banos. Reportedly the woman was driving her Ford Escort east on H Street near Colorado Avenue when the car drifted into the westbound lane. Meanwhile, Roberta Plazola was driving westbound on H Street. Plazola saw the Escort coming towards her but was unable to stop in time. Plazola was taken to Memorial Hospital in Los Banos to be treated for moderate injuries. The driver of the Escort, however, died as a result of the accident.

June 4 deadly forklift versus SUV accident in Merced County

On June 4 a man died after he drove his Chevy Tahoe into a forklift on Van Clief Road near Stevinson in Merced County. According to reports the Tahoe was southbound on Van Clief Road near First Avenue when it came upon the forklift. The forklift was facing west in the southbound lane that the Tahoe was in while it was loading things into a flatbed truck that was parked on the west shoulder of the road. By the time the driver of the Tahoe saw the forklift it was too late for him to avoid hitting it. The Tahoe hit the forklift and then turned over. The driver of the Tahoe was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the accident. He was thrown from the vehicle and died at the scene of the accident. A teenage passenger in the Tahoe was treated at a local hospital for a broken femur. The driver of the forklift escaped the accident uninjured.

May 24 fatal big rig accident on Highway 152 in Merced County

On May 24 a big rig driver was killed when he crashed his big rig on Highway 152 near the Upper Cottonwood Recreation Area in Merced County. Reportedly the big rig drifted off the south side of the highway and went up a dirt embankment before it rolled over. As it was rolling, the truck caught on fire. A witness attempted to pull the driver from the burning wreckage but was unsuccessful. The Good Samaritan suffered minor burns to his hands and was taken to Memorial Hospital in Los Banos for treatment. The driver of the big rig died at the scene of the accident.

March 18 accident at R and 13th Streets in Merced

On March 18 there was a two-vehicle accident at 13th and R Streets in Merced. According to reports the accident involved a Lincoln Navigator and a Ford Expedition. All of the four people in the Expedition escaped the accident uninjured. One of the two people in the Navigator was injured. The injured person was taken to Mercy Medical Center in Merced to be treated for her injuries. No further information regarding the cause of the accident is available at this time.

March 18 Merced accident is suspected dui

On March 18 one person was injured in an accident on R Street in Merced. According to reports Shaneil Pollard was driving her vehicle on R Street when she hit another vehicle. A passenger in her vehicle was injured and was taken to a local hospital for treatment. Pollard was arrested for suspected driving under the influence.

March 18 Merced rollover accident

On March 18 a woman was injured when her vehicle rolled over in a two-vehicle accident at O and 18th Streets in Merced. According to reports a small green SUV was traveling south on O Street when it hit a truck which was eastbound on 18th Street. The accident caused the SUV to spin and flip onto its side. The driver of the SUV was trapped and had to be cut out of the vehicle through the roof. She was taken to Mercy Medical Center in Merced to be treated for her injuries.

March 4 bicycle accident in Merced kills a seven-year-old girl

On March 4 Joanna Topete was killed when she was hit by a car while riding her bike in Merced. According to reports Joanna was riding her bicycle on the sidewalk near the Sunny View Apartments on D Street in Merced when she turned into the parking lot of the apartment complex. Joanna was then hit by a truck. The truck was leaving the parking lot as Joanna entered. She died at the scene of the accident. The driver of the truck stopped and got out to help Joanna. He was not driving under the influence at the time of the accident.

January 18 school bus accident in Merced County injures one

On January 18 a 64-year-old man was injured when his car was involved in an accident with a Merced County Office of Education school bus near Yosemite Avenue and El Redondo Drive. Reportedly the school bus was stopped in the eastbound lane of Yosemite Avenue preparing to make a left turn onto El Redondo Drive when the Camry was westbound on Yosemite. It is believed that the Camry ran a stop sign and ran into the side of the bus. The driver of the Camry was airlifted to the hospital. The three students and the driver on the bus were not injured. No further details are available at this time.

January 14 fatal pedestrian accident in Livingston

On January 14 a man was killed after being hit by a Freightliner on Highway 99 near Winton Parkway in Merced County. Reportedly the Freightliner was driving south on Highway 99 carrying a double trailer full of wine when a man was crossing the road going west and stepped in front of the big rig. The driver of the big rig, Martin Muniz applied the brakes and turned the big rig but was unable to avoid hitting the man. The victim suffered major injuries and was taken to Memorial Medical Center where he later died. The driver of the big rig was not injured in the accident.

December 2 Highwy 152 accident involving high school basketball team

On December 2 there was an accident in Merced County on Highway 152 near Los Banos. The accident involved a high school basketball team from Fresno's Hoover High School. According to reports the team was traveling in a Dodge Caravan driven by Michael McDonald when the van drifted off the right side of the road. The van  hit a power pole, slid, turned over, and hit a guard rail. McDonald was not hurt, however two students in the van suffered injuries. One student suffered a possible broken femur and wrist and another student had head trauma. The other three students in the van simply suffered scrapes and bruises. No further information is available at this time.

November 29 I-5 accident update

The accident that happened on November 29 on I-5 near Highway 152 that injured 5 people has received a more detailed report. According to the later report a Toyota Tacoma driven by Tony Gonsalves spun out in the fast lane and came to a stop facing south in the northbound lane on I-5 near Highway 152 and Los Banos. Then Roger Simmons swerved his Ford F-250 to the right in order to avoid hitting Gonsalves’s Tacoma. At the same time a Toyota Sequoia driven by Troy Allen Thompson which was following the F-250,  hit the Tacoma and the F-250 and overturned.  Thompson along with his passenger were air lifted to a local hospital with serious injuries. Two other passengers in the Sequoia had minor injuries. Gonsalves also suffered minor injuries.

November 24 fatal accident in Merced

On November 24 nine-year-old Daniel Saucedo was killed in a wrongful death accident on Yosemite Avenue in Merced. According to reports Nicholas Saucedo was driving east on Yosemite Avenue when for unknown reasons he swerved into the westbound lanes. Saucedo’s Nissan Altima then hit a Toyota Camry driven by Elaine Callis. The impact of the crash caused the Nissan to hit a tree and then a wall.  Nicholas Saucedo and his 16-year-old passenger were both taken via air to a hospital in Modesto. Callis was taken in an ambulance to a local hospital. Daniel Saucedo was not wearing a seat belt and was thrown from the Nissan. He was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident.

November 29 accident on I-5 near Highway 152

On November 29 there was a collision on I-5 involving a pickup truck and a car. According to reports the accident happened near Highway 152. Initial reports said that six people  were injured with two of them having been pinned in the vehicle. No further information is available at this time.

Contact Visalia personal injury attorney 559-713-0159.

November 16 Merced accident injures five

On November 16 there was a single-vehicle accident in Merced that injured five people. Reportedly the truck was westbound on Olive Avenue near Bedford Drive when it veered off of the right side of the road. The right side of the front of the truck hit a tree. Phillip Lopez was a passenger in that vehicle and he suffered serious injuries as a result of the accident. The driver along with three other passengers were taken to Mercy Medical Center with minor injuries. Alcohol was not a factor in the accident, but prescription drugs may have been. The investigation is still ongoing.

November 5 bicycle accident in Merced

On November 5 a bicyclist was injured after being hit by a car at 16th Street and M Street on Friday morning just after midnight. Reportedly the victim was riding east on 16th Street when the vehicle hit him while turning right onto M Street from 16th Street. The driver then fled the scene of the accident. The bicyclist was taken to Mercy Medical Center to be treated for a possible broken arm.

October 19 wrongful death accident on Highway 140

On October 19 a 40-year-old Atwater man was killed in a head-on collision on Highway 140. Reportedly the victim was driving his pickup truck west on Highway 140 when he abruptly turned into the eastbound lane into the path of a big rig. This caused the big rig to skid into the path of a Ford Taurus that was following the deceased's vehicle. Yolanda Charlton was the driver of the Taurus. Arestides Fontes, the driver of the big rig, suffered minor injuries. Charlton was taken to Doctors Medical Center with major injuries. The driver of the pickup was killed as a result of the accident.

September 18 Merced County dui accident

On September 18 two teenage girls were injured in a suspected dui accident in Merced County. According to reports a police officer had spotted a stolen vehicle and attempted to pull it over near the intersection of Lobo Avenue and Franklin Road when the vehicle continued westbound on Lobo Avenue.  The officer continued to pursue the stolen Nissan until the Nissan failed to stop at a stop sign. The vehicle then became airborn, crashed, and rolled. The Nissan was driven by a 17-year-old male who is suspected to have been driving under the influence of alcohol. The two female passengers, ages 17 and 15, were both seriously injured. One of his female passengers was thrown from the vehicle.

September 16 Highway 99 big rig accident in Merced

On September 16 a big rig hit a car on Highway 99 in Merced. Reportedly the big rig was northbound on Highway 99 when it came upon a vehicle traveling southbound in the northbound lanes. The big rig then hit the other vehicle head-on. The driver of the big rig, Marvin Oliveira, escaped without injury. The driver of the car, Leonardo Daniel Garcia-Pineda, suffered minor injuries. Garcia-Pineda's passenger, Luis Cardenas, suffered minor injuries. Garcia-Pineda was arrested for driving under the influence.

September 14 hit and run pedestrian accident in Merced

On September 14 two boys were injured after being hit by a car on Bellevue Road near Secretariat Drive in Merced. Reportedly a westbound vehicle swerved off the road and hit the boys. The car then sped away. The boys were taken via air to a Modesto hospital. The boys were age 12 and 13. The older boy has been released from the hospital, but the younger boy remains hospitalized. No further details are available at this time.