Martinez Parents Killed In Crash Identified; GoFundMe Account Set Up To Help Children

MARTINEZ - A Martinez couple killed when their vehicle overturned in a canal after a collision Sunday just outside Contra Costa County were identified Thursday by a San Joaquin County sheriff's/coroner's office spokesman.

Roberto Bolanos, 48, and Maria Mendoza-Garcia, 45, were the two people killed in the crash that also injured three children and two men, Deputy Les Garcia said.

A GoFundMe page has been created by 25-year-old Jose Bolanos, the oldest sibling of the three children who were inside the van, to take care of funeral expenses for the couple, and for future care of the children.

The incident occurred at 11:22 p.m. Sunday on state Highway 4 about a mile east of the Old River Bridge, where Contra Costa County becomes San Joaquin County, California Highway Patrol spokesman Officer Khalid Rashid said.

A Dodge van carrying Bolanos, Mendoza-Garcia and their relatives was driving on the two-lane highway's westbound side when it was involved in a crash with a Chevrolet pickup truck driven east by a 41-year-old San Pablo man.

The truck suddenly entered the van's lane for an unknown reason, prompting the van to swerve as an evasive action, Rashid said. The van was struck regardless and landed upside down in a drainage canal next to the highway.

A good Samaritan who witnessed the incident extricated passengers from the submerged van, Rashid said.

Everyone inside the van -- a 24-year-old man as well as children aged 10, 9 and 2 -- was then taken by responding medical personnel to a nearby hospital for treatment of minor injuries, Rashid said. The 41-year-old truck driver suffered major injuries and was also taken to a hospital.

Roberto Bolanos and Mendoza-Garcia were the parents of the three children, while the 24-year-old in the van was a cousin traveling with the family, according to the GoFundMe page.

Jose Bolanos wrote on the page that the children's lives "were changed forever" because "the driver of that (truck) dozed off."

On Tuesday, Rashid said the reason the truck's driver collided with the van is still being investigated by the CHP.

He was not immediately available today to provide an update on the investigation.

The older siblings plan on taking care of the children, who were said to be recovering from their injuries, according to the page.

Money donated through the site at gofundme.com/4mu5zzjm is being used to cover the cost of the funeral and expenses for the three children.

As of about noon today, more than $44,500 had been raised for the family.

-Bay City News, image via GoFundMe website