High speed crash damages property near Santa Maria elementary school

SANTA MARIA, Calif. - A high speed crash damaged property near a Santa Maria elementary school.

CHP was in pursuit of a car in excess of 100 miles an hour when it crashed and rolled over right alongside bonita elementary school.

School was not in session and only the driver and passenger were injured.

“Officer Lopez was patrolling on Betteravia just west of Black Road. And as he was traveling, he saw a vehicle that was traveling at a high rate of speed,” says Maria Barriga, with Santa Maria CHP. 

The driver of a 2007 Honda Element had reached highway 166 going over 100mph when he tried to pass a car, clipping its mirror.

“When it clipped the mirror, it lost control, rolled over across both lanes and onto Bonita school property. Both parties were trapped inside and the officers attempted to extricate the passenger. First fire arrived. They extricated the driver and they were transported to Marian Medical with major injuries,” says Barriga. 

The Santa Maria Bonita School District says it did not damage the school’s property but rather that of local air pollution control.

“The public was absolutely incredible as they saw the lights coming. They were moving over to the right, they were getting out of the way and making sure that the officer had plenty of room to execute this pursuit safely,” says Barriga. 

District staff say the school's perimeter fencing remains secure and the crash had zero impact on campus.

However, it came very close.

“Our commander was very happy with the public's reaction because they really stepped up to the challenge and allowed this officer to do their job,” says Barriga. 

The driver and passenger remained in treatment Monday for broken bones.

Students returned to school this morning as usual and do not go on winter break until December 23rd.

Santa Maria CHP says following traffic laws could be the difference between life and death.