Coroner IDs Peninsula Crash Victim Who Was Pinned To Seat By Crumpled Door

EAST PALO ALTO, CA – A man who died in an East Palo Alto crash on Friday afternoon has been publicly identified by the San Mateo County Coroner's Office. Officials say Jose Diaz-Galaviz, 49, died at the scene of the wreck. Diaz-Galaviz was a resident of East Palo Alto.

According to the Menlo Park Fire Protection District, the crash happened around 2:50 p.m. in the 2500 block of University Avenue near the East Palo Alto Library, trapping two people inside one of the vehicles – a Ford Mustang. Two people were in the other car, but they were standing outside of the vehicle when firefighters got to the scene.

"The driver's side of the Mustang was significantly damaged and the male driver was pinned in the front seat by the door itself which had been shoved into the passenger compartment," Fire Chief Harold Schapelhouman said in a news release. "Fire Paramedics on Engine 77 determined that the driver was in full cardiac arrest (non-breathing and pulse-less)."

Using the jaws of life, firefighters pried the door off the vehicle and declared Diaz-Galaviz dead at 3:04 p.m, the chief said.

"A female in the front passengers seat of the Mustang was conscious and complaining of moderate injuries, neck and back pain," he said. "Firefighters carefully removed her from the vehicle and immobilized her on a backboard with full spinal care precautions."

The woman, who was not identified, was taken to Stanford Hospital. The two victims from the other vehicle were also taken to that hospital, complaining of multiple abrasions, cuts, neck and back pain, according to Schapelhouman.

According to the chief, there's recently been an increase in serious crashes in the area.

"From vehicles to bicycles and pedestrian incidents," he said. "I'm not exactly sure what's going on but the congestion, speed, distractions and mixed multi-modal opportunities aren't always as smart or as safe as we would like. Our condolences and sympathies go out to this mans family."

University Avenue was closed for an extended period of time after the crash.

– Image credit: Menlo Fire Battalion 1, Menlo Park Fire Protection District