A 19-year-old motorist killed in a rollover crash along Highway 79 east of Temecula that injured his two passengers was identified Monday as a Long Beach man.
Preston Obeidin was fatally injured about 7:30 a.m. Sunday on the northbound 79, just south of Anza Road, according to the California Highway Patrol.
Officer Mike Lassig said that Obeidin was at the wheel of a 1998 Toyota 4Runner traveling at an unconfirmed speed when he drifted into southbound traffic, then abruptly “over-corrected to the right” to get back on the northbound side of the two-lane corridor, losing control of the SUV.
“The Toyota traveled back to the other side of the roadway and drove off onto the dirt shoulder area,” Lassig said. “The Toyota crashed into a telephone pole, which was west of the roadway. The vehicle overturned on the dirt shoulder area and came to rest on its roof.”
Riverside Fire Department paramedics reached the location a short time later and pronounced Obeidin dead at the scene.
His two passengers, one in the front seat, and the other in a rear seat, neither of whom was identified, were both injured. The front seat occupant, wearing a safety restraint, suffered minor injuries. The rear seat party was not wearing a seatbelt and suffered major injuries.
They were taken to Inland Valley Medical Center in Wildomar and were expected to recover.
The highway was shut down for over two hours as a result of the crash.