Lakeport man dies after Highway 101 medical emergency in Santa Rosa

The CHP said the man’s running car was found blocking a traffic lane on Highway 101 near Highway 12 in Santa Rosa.|
RANDI ROSSMANN
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

A 70-year-old Lakeport man died apparently after suffering a medical emergency while driving on Highway 101 in Santa Rosa, according to the CHP.

The driver was identified Monday afternoon as Charles Rich, according to the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office.

CHP officers were called at 8:15 p.m. Sunday to a car stopped in highway traffic near Highway 12. They found a Volkswagen Jetta blocking a lane, the engine still running and an apparently unconscious driver, CHP Officer Jon Sloat said in a news release.

The Jetta doors were locked, and Officer Boone Bathe broke a window to get to the man, who had a faint pulse and appeared to be having a seizure, Sloat said. Firefighters and paramedics moved the man and started CPR. He was taken to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital and pronounced dead.

- Randi Rossmann

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