Friday, Nov. 07, 2008

Woman walking along Highway 165 dies in auto crash

Law enforcement discovers victim

A 45-year-old woman suffered injuries on Mercey Springs Road that caused her to lose her life Wednesday evening.

At about 7:25 p.m. an off-duty member of Los Banos law enforcement drove up to the victim, Cmdr. Gary Brizzee said.

The member of the police department determined the victim was badly injured, Brizzee said.

The woman was walking north of the intersection of Overland Avenue and Mercey Springs Road when she was struck by a car, a press release stated.

Brizzee said the driver was still at the scene of the accident.

"He took a preliminary alcohol screening test with us. He drew blood for us and at this point we don't suspect he was under the influence of alcohol or drugs," Brizzee said.

Emergency services personnel transported the victim, who was still alive, to Memorial Hospital Los Baños. She was pronounced dead a short time afterward.

The Merced County Coroner's office is withholding the woman's name pending notification of family members, a spokeswoman said.