POTTER VALLEY — A 55-year-old Newcastle man died and seven people were injured, including four children, in a five-vehicle collision just after 11 a.m. Sunday on Highway 20 west of Potter Valley.
The unidentified fatally injured driver of a 2003 Honda Odyssey and his five passengers were reported by police to be Boys Scouts of America members, according to a California Highway Patrol report. Of the passengers, three sustained major injuries, including two children. The other two, also children, sustained moderate and minor injuries.
The deceased man”s 14-year-old son and a 17-year-old boy, both unidentified Newcastle residents, sustained major injuries and were transported to Oakland Children”s Hospital and Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital (SMH), respectively. Anthony Marlatte, 18, of Auburn also sustained major injuries and was transported to Ukiah Valley Medical Center (UVMC), according to the CHP.
Garret Boswell, 17, and Ayden Danovaro, 12, both of Auburn, sustained moderate and minor injuries, respectively. Boswell was transported to SMH and Danovaro was transported to UVMC.
The crash occurred when Eugene E. Galletti, 73, of Redwood Valley, was driving eastbound on Highway 20 in a 2006 Ford F-250 approaching Potter Valley, the CHP stated. Galletti, who sustained minor injuries and was transported to UVMC, did not realize that Joan D. Schmidt, 67, of Potter Valley, was preparing to stop in her 2011 Toyota Sequoia. Schmidt sustained minor injuries and was transported to UVMC.
Randall K. Johnson, 51, of Ukiah, was waiting to make a left turn in his 2003 Chevy Silverado when Galletti”s truck struck the Sequoia, pushing it forward and rear-ending Johnson”s Silverado, according to the report. The truck was pushed into oncoming traffic and collided with the Honda.
The Honda had been traveling westbound on Highway 20 at about 55 miles per hour.
After the impact, both the Honda and the Chevy spun out, according to the CHP. The Honda spun into the westbound lane on Highway 20 and was struck by a Dodge 2500 truck driven by Andrew L. Rivas, 22, of Lincoln. The Ford stopped on the eastbound lane.
The remaining six people involved in the collision did not report any injuries at the scene.
