SUV CRASH: Woman plunges SUV into river

August 15, 2010

Isleton – A car plunged into the Sacramento River midnight of Saturday and left its driver dead, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) said.

The Sacramento County Coroner’s Office identified the driver as Kathleen Gomez Collier, 47, of Antioch. The Sacramento Drowning Accident Rescue found her body Sunday morning about 175 feet downstream.

CHP spokesman Michael Bradley said her Ford Explorer went into the river near Vieira’s Resort off Highway 160. She was alone in the SUV.

Reports show that the victim was on her cell phone with her daughter when the accident happened. Her daughter was helping her find her way back to a major highway.

Collier stopped at the resort to ask for directions. For an unknown reason, she drove down the resort’s boat ramp and crashed into the river. The daughter alerted the authorities after her mother said that the vehicle was filling with water.

Authorities said divers looked for the woman right after the accident, but the vehicle was found unoccupied. The team returned next morning and resumed the search.

Investigators are waiting for the resort’s video surveillance to gain lead as to how Collier drove into the river.