A 61-year-old Ventura, Calif., woman riding behind family members in another car was killed Monday afternoon in a single-vehicle traffic crash near Grand Ronde.
Right-rear passenger Eliza Munoz Esquivel died when Rosa M. Mendez, 58, lost control of a 2019 Chrysler Pacifica Mini-van around a sharp right-hand corner while trailing additional family members eastbound on SR Hwy 22 at approximately 3 p.m., according to an Oregon State Police investigation.
Mendez drove across the westbound travel lane and across a gravel/paved road and into a ditch, according to the report.
A 9-year-old boy rear passenger was air-ambulanced to Salem Hospital, where he was later transported to a Portland-area hospital.
The other passengers, Maria Estella Lopez, 54; Isaias Lopez, 68; Romelia Munoz-Esquibel, 48; all from Ventura, were ground-transported to the Salem Hospital with injuries.
The Oregon State Police was assisted by Grand Ronde Tribal Police, the Oregon Department of Transportation and Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
