Fundraiser For UCSC Student With Critical Injuries From Santa Cruz Motorcycle Crash Started

SANTA CRUZ, CA — A fundraiser has been started to support the family of a 20-year-old UC Santa Cruz student, who was critically injured in a motorcycle accident on Jan. 30.

Nathan Flores was involved in a crash at the intersection of Bay and Meder streets on the morning of Jan. 30, according to Santa Cruz police.

Officers responded around 9:30 a.m. to the scene, where they determined a motorcyclist heading south on Bay Street had collided with a vehicle.

The motorcyclist, now identified as Flores, suffered what police described as life-threatening injuries and he was transported to a local hospital before being airlifted to the Santa Clara Valley Medical Trauma Center in San Jose, according to a GoFundMe campaign set up to assist the family.

The driver of the vehicle stayed at the scene and cooperated with investigators, police said.

As soon as Flores’s father, LAPD Officer Mark Flores received the news "him and his family immediately traveled to San Jose to be with him," the GoFundMe page stated.

Flores is currently in critical condition. His medical team informed the family that he has "suffered a major spinal and head injury where his spine detached from his skull amongst other major injuries," the fundraiser stated.

The initial treatment plan to place a halo has been put on hold "due to the amount of cranial swelling," the fundraiser noted.

His father, who serves as an LAPD Officer in the Rampart Division, is currently in San Jose and plans to remain there for 2-3 months to be with his son, according to the campaign organizers.

"It's times like these that we need to lean on each other and help support one another," the GoFundMe stated.

Anyone with information about the collision is asked to call Lt. Wes Morey at the Santa Cruz Police Department at (831) 420-5857.