Deadly crash near Mountain Center under investigation

MOUNTAIN CENTER, Calif. (KESQ) - An autopsy was pending today on a 74-year-old motorist fatally injured after he crashed into an embankment along Highway 74 near Mountain Center.  

The fatality occurred shortly after 10 a.m. Saturday on the eastbound side of the highway, near the junction for Highway 243, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Officer Ricardo Palomera said the victim, identified only as a Hemet man, was the sole occupant of the 2001 Honda Accord, traveling at an unconfirmed speed when he apparently lost control.  

The sedan plowed into rising terrain.   

"The driver was not seat-belted at the time,'' Palomera said.   

Reports from the scene indicated that the man may have been nude in the car.   

No other vehicles were involved.   

The victim was taken to Riverside University Medical Center in Moreno Valley, where he died a short time later.   

"It is currently unknown if alcohol or drugs contributed to the crash,'' Palomera said.

Anyone with information about the crash was asked to contact the CHP Beaumont office at 951-846-5300.