Woman dies in single vehicle rollover accident in Washoe Valley

One woman died and a man was taken to the hospital by Care Flight after a single car rollover accident in the Washoe Valley early Friday morning.

Troopers from the Nevada Highway Patrol (NHP) responded to the accident on I-580 north of Bellevue Drive at 6:12 a.m on March 4, 2016.

The driver, 50-year-old Oscar Esparza of Sparks, Nev., was driving a Dodge pickup truck southbound when he allowed the vehicle to drift to the left and into the inside dirt median. The vehicle overturned, ejecting both the driver and female passenger of the vehicle. The pickup then landed back on its wheels and proceeded in a west/southwest direction, crossing both southbound travel lanes before coming to a stop in a field on the west side of IR580.

Esparza was transported to a Reno hospital by Care Flight. The female passenger, whose name is being withheld pending notification of next of kin, was pronounced deceased at the scene of the crash due to injuries sustained during the incident.

Both occupants were believed to have not been wearing their seatbelts at the time of the crash and impairment is under investigation at this time.

Trooper Karen Garretson of the Nevada Highway Patrol’s Multi-Disciplinary Investigation and Reconstruction Team (MIRT) is investigating this incident. Anyone who may have witnessed this incident or who may have information related to this incident is encouraged to reach out to him at (775) 688-2500 or kgarretson@dps.state.nv.us regarding case number NHP-160300279.