Last Updated on January 3, 2018 by CCAR Staff
A Granada Hills man was identified Wednesday as the motorist killed on New Year’s Day when his car veered off the 10 Freeway between Indio and Blythe in Coachella Valley.
He was Edwin Steighorst, 49, the Riverside County coroner’s office said.
The man now identified as Steighorst was killed at 2:05 a.m. Monday on the westbound 10, east of Hayfield Road, according to California Highway Patrol Officer Mike Radford.
The officer said the man’s 2018 Hyundai Elantra went “airborne” after traveling off the right side of the interstate, then landed on boulders. The impact caused the Hyundai to overturn. Responding officers found the car on its roof, north of the freeway.
The crash also sparked a small brush fire that was quickly contained by Riverside County firefighters, Radford said.
Steighorst and a dog were pronounced dead at the scene, firefighters said.
The crash remained under investigation, but Radford said the man was wearing his seatbelt and that alcohol or drugs did not appear to be contributing factors in the crash.
