A solo vehicle crash and fire on southbound Interstate 5 just north of State Route 198 near Coalinga left one person dead early in the morning.
According to California Highway Patrol dispatch logs, the incident was reported at 2:21 a.m. as a vehicle on fire in the center divider, possibly involved in a traffic collision. A reporting party advised that two occupants were out of the vehicle and walking around. The vehicle appeared to have front- and rear-end damage and was overturned in the center divider. The incident was transferred to Cal Fire. At 2:37 a.m., the vehicle was reported as fully engulfed. No ambulance requests or CPR efforts were noted in the logs. A coroner arrived on scene at 4:57 a.m.
CHP units were assigned at 2:23 a.m., with the first unit en route at that time and arriving at 2:37 a.m. Additional units arrived by 2:45 a.m. A tow truck was requested at 4:58 a.m. for the completely burned vehicle, identified as a blue 2004 GMC Yukon with only the front license plate remaining. The incident was updated to a fatality at 6:01 a.m., described as a solo vehicle fatality. Units began clearing the scene at 5:08 a.m., with the final unit cleared at 6:01 a.m.
No lane closures or traffic breaks were detailed in the logs.
The identities of those involved and the cause of the crash were not immediately available.
The CHP recorded the crash at GPS coordinates: 36.257907 -120.246414
Sources:
– CHP CAD incident viewer: https://cad.chp.ca.gov/
