Sunday's Fatal I-280 Crash Blamed On Driver Falling Asleep At Wheel

An accident that killed the passenger of a vehicle on Interstate Highway 280 in Cupertino early Sunday occurred after the driver fell asleep and crashed into a tree, a California Highway Patrol officer said today.

The CHP received a report of the single-vehicle crash at 5:36 a.m. Sunday on the shoulder off of the southbound lanes on Highway 280 just south of Wolfe Road, Officer Ross Lee said.

[Previous: Coroner IDs Passenger Killed In Sunday Crash On I-280.]

A passenger, Saul Pacheco Reyes, 22, of Sunnyvale, was found dead at the scene and the driver of the vehicle, a 21-year-old woman, was suffering major head injuries, Lee said.

The woman, who is expected to survive, told officers that she was behind the wheel headed south on Highway 280 after she and Reyes, her boyfriend, were returning from a family visit, Lee said.

She was traveling at nearly 80 mph when she fell asleep, according to Lee.

The vehicle then veered to the right onto the shoulder and slammed into a tree, he said.

Both she and Reyes were wearing their safety belts but the impact of the crash was too strong for Reyes to survive, Lee said. The driver talked to officers while in and out of consciousness due to her head injuries, he said.

Officers found no evidence that the driver used alcohol or drugs. The crash remains under investigation, Lee said.

--Bay City News

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