WATSONVILLE — A 26-year-old Australian woman died Sunday in what the California Highway Patrol has deemed a DUI crash involving an all-terrain vehicle.
CHP Sgt. Troy Vincent said a 29-year-old man was driving the 2007 Polaris ATV around 10:45 p.m. on the 1100 block of Redwood Heights Road off of Freedom Boulevard. At one point the driver lost control and as the vehicle overturned the driver, the victim and a 29-year-old male passenger were ejected.
Following the crash, the CHP said, the two men performed CPR on the woman and then transported her to a nearby residence where they were met with a team of medical personnel.
First aid was rendered there as well, but the woman was pronounced dead at the scene.
The driver, Nicolas Zier of Portola Valley, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, and booked into Santa Cruz County Jail.
Zier and the male passenger, also of Portola Valley, suffered minor injuries.
The incident is still under investigation.
