A drunken driver was speeding in his Volkswagen through streets in Hemet at up to 100 miles per hour moments before he ran a stop sign and slammed into cross traffic, killing the driver and his female passenger.
Two people in a Dodge truck hit by the speeding Volkswagen survived.
Police were called just before 2 a.m. Thursday to Buena Vista Street and Whittier Avenue, and found the Volkswagen that was “partially wrapped around a tree” just west of the intersection.
The Dodge truck had run into a fence northwest of the intersection, said Hemet police Lt. Eric Dickson.
The two people in the Volkswagen were pronounced dead at the scene.
However, the man driving the Dodge truck that was hit by the Volkswagen was not injured and his female passenger was transported to a hospital.
She was expected to recover from her injuries, Dickson said.
An investigation revealed that the sedan was speeding between 90 to 100 miles per hour westbound on Whittier Avenue when it ran a stop sign and struck the front corner of the Dodge truck, he said.
“At this time it is believed that alcohol may have been a factor with the Volkswagen and that the driver of the Dodge may have been impaired as well,” Dickson said. “However, the investigation is ongoing.”
The two people killed in the speeding Volkswagen were identified Friday by the Riverside County coroner’s office.
They were Margaret Avina, 33, and Nicholas Macias, 22, both of Hemet. Macias was the driver.
Hemet police asked anyone who saw the crash to call them at (951) 765-2400.
–City News Service