Joan Rubalcava Killed in Multi-Vehicle Accident on Highway 99 [Merced County, CA]

Coroner Identifies Fresno Woman Killed in Highway 99 Multi-Vehicle Crash near Le Grand in Merced County

 
MERCED COUNTY, CA (February 27, 2022) – Joan Rubalcava was killed in multi-vehicle accident on Highway 99 in Merced County on Wednesday evening.
 
The accident happened around 7:41 p.m. on February 23, just north of Le Grand Road. According to the CHP, 22-year-old Billy Cole of Red Bluff was driving a 2006 Nissan Titan northbound on the highway. For unknown reasons, he drove his vehicle into the center divider.
 
The Nissan then traveled across the median and into the southbound lanes of traffic, where it collided head-on with a 2017 Honda Pilot, driven by Rubalcava.
 
The impact caused at least one of the vehicles to collide with a 2019 Chevrolet Malibu, driven by 41-year-old Carla Benavides of Chowchilla.
 
As a result, Rubalcava suffered fatal injuries and died at the scene. She was a 51-year-old Fresno resident, according to the Merced County Sheriff Coroner’s Office.
 
Meanwhile, paramedics airlifted Cole to Doctors Medical Center in Modesto with moderate injuries. A ground ambulance took Benavides to Mercy Medical Center with minor injuries.
 
Neither drugs nor alcohol appear to be a factor in the crash, which remains under investigation.

We would like to extend our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of Joan Rubalcava.

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