Driver identified in single-vehicle crash on Elverta Road that knocked NPR radio station offline
A single-vehicle crash that claimed the life of an Elverta motorist Sunday also knocked a Sacramento-area NPR station off the air.
The crash occurred about 10 a.m. near Ernst Road, east of Highway 99. CHP officials said Giroux veered off the roadway and collided with a power pole. The cause of the crash remains under investigation by the CHP North Sacramento office.
Lee Vincent Giroux, 65, was identified by the Sacramento County Coroner’s Office as the driver killed. He was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.
The wreck temporarily disrupted power to nearby farms and facilities. It also disabled the signal for KQEI-FM (89.3), a repeater station that carries San Francisco-based KQED-FM (88.5) programming to Sacramento and the Central Valley.
KQED officials confirmed Monday that KQEI was broadcasting dead air after the crash knocked some of its equipment offline. KQEI shares a radio tower with Capital Public Radio, KXJZ-FM (90.9) and KISS 107.9 (KZIS-FM), which is operated by iHeartRadio. Those stations continued broadcasting without interruption.
KQEI returned to normal operation around 11 a.m.
This story was originally published March 10, 2025 at 10:39 AM.
