Three Women ID'd In Deadly Lake Elsinore Crash

LAKE ELSINORE, CA — Three women who died in a head-on crash in Lake Elsinore on Friday have been publicly identified by the Riverside County coroner's office. Two of them were residents of Temecula, and one lived in Riverside.

Tatiana Roach, 47, of Riverside was the sole occupant of a gold-colored Honda, the coroner and Riverside County sheriff's officials said. Claudia Goldstein, 51, and Janee Briscoe, 31, both of Temecula were in a silver Nissan sedan.

All three were declared dead just minutes after the 1:24 p.m. crash Friday, according to coroner's reports. The eastbound Honda and westbound Nissan collided in the middle of state Route 74. The wreck occurred at the edge of the Lake Elsinore city limits, according to the sheriff's department and the CHP.

According to witnesses, one of the vehicles caught fire immediately after the crash near the intersection of SR 74 and Trellis Lane. Riverside County Fire Department crews reached the scene within a few minutes and extinguished the blaze, then proceeded to extricate the victims.

The highway was closed for approximately six hours on Friday afternoon following the incident. The cause of the collision was not immediately known.

The sheriff's department is handling the investigation into the crash and asked that anyone who may have seen something to call the Lake Elsinore Police Department at (951) 245-3300.

— City News Service contributed to this report / Image courtesy William Hayes