23-year-old Pacific Grove man killed in solo-vehicle crash in Fresno County canal
A 23-year-old driver is dead Friday after his vehicle went into a canal in Fresno County.
The California Highway Patrol said the crash happened at 8:20 p.m. at Highway 180, east of Zumwalt Avenue when a Honda Accord veered off the eastbound roadway and onto the south dirt shoulder before entering the Friant Kern Canal.
CHP said the vehicle was fully submerged upside down in the cold, fast-moving water.
Multiple agencies responded to the scene, including the Fresno Fire Dive Team, which located a dead man from Pacific Grove inside the vehicle. He was identified as Elias Mayeda.
No other victims were found after a downstream search, CHP said.
Family told officers the driver was on the phone at the time of the crash before the call disconnected.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation, and it is currently unknown if drugs or alcohol were a factor pending toxicology results.
The investigation is ongoing.
This story was originally published May 24, 2025 at 11:56 AM.
