1 dead following weekend crash in Merced County

One of two men injured last weekend when a stolen vehicle crashed outside Delhi has died, the California Highway Patrol confirmed.

The CHP has not released the name of either man involved in the Sunday afternoon crash on August Avenue. The man who died this week was described by the CHP as a Latino male about 34 years old.

Officer Moises Onsurez confirmed that the other man remains in critical condition at a Modesto hospital.

Onsurez said the vehicle, a Honda Accord, had been reported stolen out of Merced a few hours before the crash. Neither drugs nor alcohol has been ruled out as a possible factor in the crash, he said.

Investigators are waiting for test results and hoping additional witnesses will come forward.

“We’re looking for anybody who may have seen the driver and the passenger in the vehicle before the collision, maybe driving in that area,” Onsurez said. “They don’t need to have witnessed the actual crash. Finding witnesses who saw these two in the car before the crash could really help the investigators.”

Officers responded to the wreck just after 4 p.m. Sunday. Investigators said the vehicle was heading west on August Avenue at about 55 mph. The vehicle was seen traveling down the center line, forcing several other vehicles to pull to the side of the road to avoid a collision, the CHP said.

The vehicle then drove across the eastbound lane of traffic and onto the south shoulder, where it spun out of control, struck a large steel power pole and split in half, officers said.

Both men were thrown clear of the vehicle and found on the ground, authorities said.

Onsurez said the cause of the crash remains under investigation.

This story was originally published May 29, 2015 at 8:18 AM with the headline "1 dead following weekend crash in Merced County."