Guardrail planned for Highway 1 curve along Russian River where Jenner sisters died

A weathered bird feather and a palm-sized portrait of Jesus in a clear, protective sleeve are about all that’s left of the makeshift memorial that grew alongside Highway 1 near Jenner a year ago, after two young sisters died in a crash on a curve in the road.

Stuck to a roadside utility pole on the southern edge of this coastal hamlet, they serve as reminders where none is needed of the August morning the Markus girls were riding in their mom’s pickup when she lost control on slippery, wet pavement. The truck careened over a steep embankment and into the Russian River below, trapping Kaitlyn, 6, and Hailey, 4, in the submerged cab.

Their mother, Sarah Markus, managed to kick out a window and escape, but was unable to free her daughters from the sunken wreckage.

Neighbors of the girls, working with public officials over the past year, are now finalizing plans to ensure a different, more permanent tribute to the sisters goes up on the shoulder of the highway.

Spurred by the Aug. 23, 2016 crash, Caltrans has approved installation of a 600-foot guardrail along the curve in the highway by year’s end, a barrier for thousands of vehicles that pass through the hillside village on a given day.

“It’s long overdue,” said Sonoma County Supervisor Lynda Hopkins, who represents the area. “I’m glad that it finally will be completed. I just wish that it had come sooner.”

Also planned are four, solar-powered speed feedback signs that flash the pace at which cars coming into town on either end are traveling, in hopes that slowing traffic will further prevent tragedy.

“This was a horrific event,” said state Sen. Mike McGuire, the Healdsburg Democrat who represents the North Coast and helped spearhead the coordination with Caltrans. “It was tragic, and the community took action after this event to ensure we never see a repeat.”

Jenner, with about 136 people total, claimed only a handful of children among its residents when the Markus sisters died, a loss that was mourned throughout the scenic town at the mouth of the Russian River.

But they were not the first to lose their lives on that piece of road.

Two years earlier, a Cazadero man, Devin Cooper, 28, struck the end of a short guardrail and flipped his pickup just a few yards north of where the Markus family crashed. And four years before that, in nearly the same spot as the Markus crash, a tourist was found dead, trapped in her submerged car.

In each case, Jenner residents pleaded for safety improvements, though until this past year it felt they had “hit a dead end,” said David Kenly, whose home overlooks the stretch of riverside road.

After the sisters died, people at every level of the debate understood that something had to be done.

“Unfortunately, it sometimes takes a horrific event like this to get things moving and to get public officials to step into the fray,” said Jenner resident Steve Dee, a retired environmental specialist with the county planning and permit department. “I personally couldn’t just stand by and watch this be frittered away and watch these little girls’ tragic death be in vain.”

“We’re seeing to it that this incident makes all the difference in terms of dealing with these kinds of issues,” he said. “It’s really in their memory.”

In the immediate aftermath of the crash, Caltrans installed three black and yellow chevron signs marking the curve in the highway where Sarah Markus’ truck went over. Speed limit signs also were installed south of town in an effort to slow motorists’ approach, McGuire said.

The guardrail plan was unveiled in June at a meeting of public and agency officials, and local committee members.

“Our No. 1 priority has always been to make the roadway safer,” McGuire said. “And then, after feedback we received from the community members, because this is the gateway to the community, we were able to change the look of the guardrail from more of shiny metal to more of a rustic look.”

Jenner residents will have a chance to learn more about the new improvements at a community meeting Monday night, hosted by McGuire and Hopkins.

The 6:30 p.m. meeting will be held at the Jenner Community Center, 10398 Highway 1.

You can reach Staff Writer Mary Callahan at 707-521-5249 or mary.callahan@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @MaryCallahanB.