City Worker ID'd As Victim Of Hemet Crash, Suspected DUI Driver Arrest

HEMET, CA — A City of Hemet Public Works employee was struck and killed Thursday morning by a suspected DUI driver, Hemet Police said in a news release.

The Riverside County Coroner's Office identified Derek Holt, 40, of Hemet, as the victim killed in the deadly incident.

Shortly before 8 a.m., emergency officials arrived at the crash scene on Acacia Avenue just west of Kirby Street in Hemet, where a passenger vehicle had collided with a City of Hemet Public Works utility truck. Holt, a city employee, was struck while outside of his vehicle, according to California Highway Patrol Officer Jonathan Torres. He was found unresponsive at the scene as a result of the crash.

"Officers immediately began providing first aid, but unfortunately, he succumbed to his injuries on the scene," Torres said.

CHP assumed the investigation and arrested the driver—who remained at the scene—on suspicion of DUIs. The driver was taken into custody without incident and booked into the Smith Correctional Facility in Banning, awaiting formal charges, according to Torres.

During the incident, officers closed a section of Acacia Avenue, both east and westbound, between S. Sanderson Avenue and Kirby Street, which remained closed much of the day.

No further information was immediately available.