Man dead, two injured in northern Mendocino County crash

A Willits man died and two others suffered major injuries when the 2001 GMC Yukon they were in overturned on Highway 271 in northern Mendocino County at about 6 p.m. Tuesday, the CHP said.

William Brian Dukes, the 41-year-old driver, was killed in the incident, according the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office. The cause of the crash is under investigation, but the CHP suspects alcohol or drugs may have played a role, the agency said in a news release.

His passengers were Paul Coleman, 29, of Leggett and Rudy Arias, whose age and hometown were not available.

Dukes for unknown reasons allowed the vehicle to drift off the road’s edge, the CHP said. He then overcorrected, causing the vehicle to overturn several times.

The driver, who was not wearing a seatbelt, and the front passenger were ejected as the vehicle tumbled. Dukes was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash, the CHP said. Both passengers suffered major injuries and were transported to Howard Memorial Hospital in Willits. The more seriously injured, Arias, was then flown to an unspecified Santa Rosa hospital. Like the driver, he was not wearing a seatbelt, according to the CHP.