Merced woman killed in crash on Santa Fe

MERCED -- A 73-year-old woman died during a solo-vehicle crash Wednesday night on Santa Fe Drive.

Merced resident Virginia Tolleson was pronounced dead at the scene after she was ejected from the vehicle she was riding in, said officer Ed Macias of the California Highway Patrol.

The 2010 Honda was traveling east on Santa Fe Drive east of Beachwood Drive when the 20-year-old driver swerved to avoid a chair in the road, Macias said. She lost control of the vehicle, which traveled onto the right shoulder and overturned in a ditch.

The driver and a 23-year-old passenger, both from Winton, suffered minor injuries and were taken to Mercy Medical Center, Macias said. Tolleson, unlike the other two passengers, wasn't wearing her seat belt.

Reporter Mike North can be reached at (209) 385-2453 or mnorth@mercedsunstar.com.