Woman killed in collision with trailer north of Los Banos, CHP says

A driver is dead following a traffic collision near Los Banos over the weekend, according to authorities.

At about 4:45 a.m. Saturday, Los Banos area California Highway Patrol officers responded to a report of a collision involving two vehicles and wood debris in the area of Henry Miller Avenue, east of Johnson Road, according to a CHP news release.

Authorities said the front of a 2015 Chrysler driven west on Henry Miller Avenue by a 38-year-old Los Banos woman collided with the front of a two-axle flatbed utility trailer that had detached from a vehicle and was obstructing the lanes of Henry Miller Avenue.

The impact resulted in major injuries to the driver and caused the trailer to spin and come to rest in the eastbound lane, the CHP said. Eugenio Mendoza, 51, of Los Banos, was driving a 2002 Toyota east on Henry Miller Avenue and attempted to avoid the trailer by braking and veering to the right but could not avoid the crash.

The CHP said the Toyota collided with the trailer, sending the trailer in a northeast direction where it came to rest on the north shoulder of Henry Miller Avenue. The second impact caused a wooden shed that had been affixed to the trailer to dislodge, blocking the lanes of Henry Miller Avenue. The collision resulted in wood and vehicle debris blocking the entire roadway, according to the release.

The woman was transported to Doctor’s Medical Center, where she died of her injuries, the CHP said. The woman’s name has not been released pending notification of family. Mendoza was not injured in the crash. According to authorities, neither drugs nor alcohol appear to have been factors in the collision.

The CHP said it would conduct a follow-up investigation to determine the origin of the trailer and what may have caused it to be involved in the collision, according to the release.