By Larry Judkins
Glenn County Observer
Monday afternoon, the CHP issued a press release concerning tragic accident that took the life of a five-year-old early Saturday evening.
According to the release from the Willows Area Office of the California Highway Patrol, at about 6 p.m. on Saturday, October 26, Savannah M. Dees, 24, of Olivehurst, was driving a 2009 Ford south on County Road M, south of County Road 27.
At the time, the driver was transporting three small children, ages five years, two years, and one year. All other information (names, genders, city or cities of residence, even whether their safety equipment was in use) was improperly withheld in the news release.
Dees was wearing her seat belts.
Dees reportedly continued southbound at an unknown speed above the 55 mph speed limit. Then, south of Road 27, the driver turned the Ford to the west, where it traveled across the road edge and struck a power pole.
Upon impact, the vehicle overturned several times before coming to rest along the west shoulder of Road M.
As a result of the crash, the five-year-old suffered fatal injuries. The other two children sustained minor injuries and were transported by ground ambulance to an unspecified “local area hospital.”
CHP Officer J. Blanken, the investigating officer who submitted the media release, stated, “It appears as if alcohol and drugs were a contributing factor” in the accident.
The investigation into the cause of this crash is still pending.
As reported previously in The Observer, according to the Glenn County Jail, Dees was booked into the facility on charges alleging causing bodily injury while driving while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, causing bodily injury while driving while under the influence of alcohol, gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury which results in the death of a child under the age of eight years by a person having the care or custody of the child, and two counts of infliction of injury on a child (all felonies).
Her bail was set at $690,000.
A call to the jail late Monday afternoon indicated she was still in custody.
The Glenn County Observer 