One person killed during police chase in Merced County, authorities confirm

One person was killed Wednesday when green Honda sedan crashed and caught fire while its driver was trying to outrun police, the Sun-Star has confirmed.

A 31-year-old man died at the scene, authorities have confirmed.

The Honda crashed around 10:48 a.m. in a ditch in the area of Highway 99 and Winton Parkway and at least one person may have been trapped inside, authorities said.

Few details were immediately available.

Authorities said Merced police were conducting a probation compliance check on Determine Drive when the pursuit started at around 10:35 a.m. Officers chased the car through Atwater, reporting speeds of around 40 mph. The driver of the Honda was reportedly blowing through stop signs and, at times, driving the wrong way in traffic.

CHP, whose officers did not participate in the chase, is leading the crash investigation.

CHP Officer Eric Zuniga said officers were told the car was traveling north “recklessly” at high speeds when it veered off the road onto the center median. He said the driver “overcorrected” back to the right, raced back across both lanes of northbound traffic, then the car left the roadway and slammed into a tree in a ditch.

The man, whose name has not been released, died at the scene.

This story has been corrected to show CHP's role in the investigation.

This story was originally published December 13, 2017 at 10:56 AM with the headline "One person killed during police chase in Merced County, authorities confirm."