Police in Huntington Beach Thursday were investigating a collision involving a suspected impaired driver that took the life of a 53-year-old woman when her SUV was rear-ended and became partially submerged in a wetlands area.
The crash was reported about 10:40 p.m. Wednesday on Pacific Coast Highway south of Warner Avenue, according to Jessica Cuchilla, public affairs officer with the Huntington Beach Police Department.
A silver Kia Soul and a white BMW 328i collided, sending the Kia into the marsh, she said.
“HBPD officers, along with Huntington Beach Lifeguards who were also called to the scene, extracted (the victim) from Long Beach from the Kia,” Cuchilla said. “Paramedics were called to the scene, and she was transported to a local hospital, where she eventually succumbed to her injuries.”
The BMW’s driver was identified as 23-year-old Lukas McArgue of Long Beach, who was booked on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and DUI combined with alcohol and drugs causing bodily injury, according to the city’s arrest logs.
“Based on the preliminary investigation, the Kia was traveling northbound on PCH when it was struck from behind by the BMW, also traveling northbound on PCH, sending the Kia into the wetlands,” according to Cuchilla.
The collision was being investigated by the HBPD Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team, and anyone who may have witnessed the collision or the events leading up to it was urged to contact HBPD Traffic Investigator V. Rattanchandani at 714-960-5231.