One Killed in Crash Near La Honda

UPDATE 6:40 p.m.: The San Mateo County coroner's office has identified Luis Audelo-Partida, 26, a Newark resident, as the man killed in a crash near La Honda late this morning.

UPDATE 3:49 p.m.: Police now say one person was killed in a crash near La Honda late this morning that involved workers who were performing weed abatement for a local open space district.

The crash was reported at 11:22 a.m. in the vicinity of Alpine and Mindego Hill roads, in a rural area of San Mateo County near the Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve, a California Highway Patrol officer said.

It appears the vehicle involved was being driven in an area without a paved road and somehow went out of control and tumbled into a canyon, according to the CHP.

The CHP reported earlier today that three people had died, but CHP Sgt. Matt Otterby said this afternoon there is only one confirmed fatality.

Two other people suffered major injuries and were airlifted to hospitals, Otterby said.

Three people suffered minor injuries and one person was uninjured, CHP Officer Kevin Bartlett said.

Rescue crews are having trouble reaching the crash site, which is only accessible by foot and horseback, he said.

"We're going in slow motion because it's so hard to get to everyone," Bartlett said.

Three medical helicopters were dispatched to the area, he said.

The people who were in the vehicle that crashed are contractors who were out spraying non-native plants for the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, district spokesman Gordon Baillie said.

Baillie said he did not yet have much information on the crash.

The San Mateo County Sheriff's Office, the San Mateo County Fire Department and other agencies responded to the crash.

UPDATE 2:04 p.m.: Three people were killed late this morning when a vehicle carrying contractors for a local open space district went off a dirt road near La Honda and tumbled into a canyon, according to the district and the California Highway Patrol.

The crash was reported at 11:22 a.m. in the general area of Alpine and Mindego Hill roads.

CHP Officer Kevin Bartlett said it appears the vehicle, which was possibly an SUV, may have been carrying six to eight people.

Three have died, and the others suffered injuries ranging from serious to minor, he said.

Rescue crews are having trouble reaching the crash site, which is only accessible by foot and horseback, he said.

"We're going in slow motion because it's so hard to get to everyone," Bartlett said. At least two medical helicopters have been dispatched to the area.

The people who were in the vehicle are contractors who were out spraying non-native plants for the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, district spokesman Gordon Baillie said.

Baillie said he did not yet have much information on the crash.

"It's in a remote area of the Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve," he said.

Crews were still at the scene trying to help the victims as of 1:45 p.m.

-- Bay City News Service