Update: Two killed at Madera barbecue in late August identified by the coroner

Two men were identified by the Madera County Coroner’s Office after a tragedy at a barbecue.

Identified were 42-year-old Arturo Carabez Ochoa of Kerman and 22-year-old Gustavo Quezada-Chavez of Firebaugh.

The incident took place on Aug. 26 at Avenue 17 and Crescent Drive.

The CHP said the deaths occurred just before 10 p.m. when a Kerman man attending the event was getting corn from the bed of a Ford F-250 pickup on the south shoulder of Avenue 17, just east of Crescent. That’s when the male driver of a Nissan Altima, headed east, drifted onto the right shoulder and hit the man and the pickup.

The impact killed Ochoa. The Nissan then caught fire. Despite efforts to put out the blaze by people at the barbecue, the driver, Quezada-Chavez of Firebaugh, also died at the scene.

The CHP said it has not been determined whether the Nissan driver was under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

This story was originally published August 26, 2023 at 2:54 PM.