Coroner IDs Victim In Route 111 Fatal Crash

MECCA, CA — The Riverside County Coroner's Bureau released the name of a 45-year-old man killed as a result of a head-on collision in Mecca. One other person was killed in the same crash, and a passenger was hospitalized. That individual is known to be a Mecca city resident.

Emmanuel Guevara was pronounced dead at the scene, the Riverside County coroner's office announced Friday.

The crash happened just after noon Thursday on state Route 111 south of Avenue 68, according to the California Highway Patrol.

CHP Officer David Torres said a blue Honda Civic collided head-on with a blue Acura TL after the Civic drove from the southbound to the northbound lane to pass a slower vehicle.

A female passenger was the sole survivor from both vehicles, and was airlifted to the Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs for unknown injuries.

The cause of the crash was under investigation, and it was undetermined whether drugs or alcohol were factors in the collision.