Head-on collision along rural Northern California highway kills 19-year-old, the CHP says

One motorist is dead and another was seriously injured after their cars collided head-on Sunday along a stretch of rural highway in Sutter County, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The crash happened about 6:40 p.m. on Highway 113 just south of Leiser Road after a 19-year-old driver tried to overtake two cars while traveling northbound, according to the CHP’s Yuba-Sutter office.

The driver of the gray Volkswagen sedan moved across a solid yellow line into the southbound lane to make an unsafe pass of the cars, the CHP said. The maneuver happened along a bend in the road when a black Mercedes-Benz sedan, driven southbound by a 37-year-old woman from Woodland, approached, officers said.

The Mercedes swerved to the right to avoid the VW. The 19-year-old veered left, the CHP said, setting up the fatal crash on the dirt shoulder.

The 19-year-old, identified only as a Marysville resident, died at the scene, the CHP said; the woman in the Mercedes was transported to UC Davis Medical Center with broken legs.

The driver who was killed is expected to be identified by the Sutter County Coroner’s Office once relatives are notified.

While the CHP continues to investigate the crash, officers said drugs and alcohol were not factors.