Fatal Head-on Crash on Highway 152 Near Gilroy in Santa Clara County
Children Killed in Highway 152 Crash Are Sisters
SANTA CLARA COUNTY, Calif. (Jan. 15, 2024) — Two children, ages 4 and 7 years old, both died Friday morning in a head-on crash on Highway 152, just east of Gilroy.
Several other people were injured in the multi-vehicle crash that occurred on Jan. 12th, just west of Lake Road, according to the Gilroy Dispatch.
The young girls, who are from Morgan Hill, were passengers in a 2017 Dodge van which was one of two vehicles hit head-on by a Tesla as its driver attempted to pass a semi-truck on Highway 152.
A Los Banos man driving westbound in a 2021 Tesla was attempting to pass the 2016 Peterbilt tractor trailer truck and moved into an eastbound lane where it collided first with a 2018 Honda and then with the Dodge van, according to the California Highway Patrol. The Dodge spun around into westbound lanes where it was hit by the semi-truck.
Meanwhile, the driver in the Tesla lost control and continued to travel in a westerly direction before it struck a 2020 Subaru in the eastbound lanes.
Sisters Killed in Crash are Identified
Elisa Ornelas, 7, a second-grader at Jackson Academy of Art and Music in Morgan Hill, and her little sister, Valentina Ornelas, 4, were among four people traveling in the Dodge van. Elisa died at the crash scene, while Valentina was taken by ambulance to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center where she later died.
Meanwhile, a one-year-old baby brother, the man driving the Dodge and a second adult survived the collision. The family of the two girls have a GoFundMe to cover costs of their funeral.
Additionally, three people from the Honda and the Subaru driver all suffered minor injuries.
However, the man driving the Tesla sustained major injuries and was transported by ambulance to San Jose Regional Medical Center.
The case remains under investigation by the CHP Hollister-Gilroy Office.
Santa Clara County Traffic Statistics
There were 6,553 injury and fatality collisions in Santa Clara County in 2020, according to the most recent statistics compiled by the Office of Traffic Safety. Also, 842 of these collisions involved alcohol and 1,616 were speed related, the report said. The county ranks 51st among 58 similar sized counties in California for it’s number of traffic injuries and fatalities.
Furthermore, the report states that 287 of the injury or fatality collisions involved a motorcyclist and 405 involved a pedestrian.
Johnson Attorneys Group hopes this news information is timely and helpful, but our law firm does not represent any of the parties mentioned above . Additionally, if you would like to contribute any information, add a GoFundMe page or have legal questions, please call 1-(855) 703-4186 as soon as possible. Our personal injury law firm is a proud, longtime supporter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD).
