Woman impaled by metal fence railing in Petaluma crash, driver flees

A female passenger impaled by a metal fence railing in a vehicle crash outside Petaluma on Saturday morning was flown to Stanford Medical Center with life-threatening injuries.

By the time emergency crews responded to the crash at 10:30 a.m., the male driver of the black Honda Civic had fled on foot, fire and law enforcement officials said.

Law enforcement searched the on the ground and from the area but had not found the driver by Saturday evening. The man has been identified as a friend of the victim, said CHP Sgt. Jason Bahlman. He said the driver’s name would not be released until that information is confirmed.

Bahlman said it wasn’t clear whether the driver was hurt during the crash.

The passenger had to be cut from the vehicle, which firefighters said appeared to have flipped on its roof and slid into a iron pipe fence along Skillman Lane. A long metal rail from the fence pierced the front of the car and ran through the woman, who was sitting in the front passenger seat. The rail exited through her back near her rib cage and extended through the rear of the car, according to Rancho Adobe Fire Protection District Battalion Chief Andy Taylor

“The metal pole went through the patient and through the entire other side of the car,” Taylor said.

The woman, who authorities did not identify, still had a portion of the pole in her body when she was flown to the hospital, Taylor said.

She was first taken to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital before being flown to Stanford Medical Center.

Police said the woman was conscious and talking when emergency crews arrived, roughly 5 minutes after receiving a 911 call.

It took about 12 minutes to cut the pipe and free the woman, said Rancho Adobe Fire Captain Jimmy Bernal.

Bernal said the extent of the woman’s injuries shocked even veteran first responders.

“It is one of the most horrific calls I’ve ever been on,” Bernal said.

The crash was in a residential neighborhood near 3200 Skillman Lane in Petaluma.

At the scene several hours after the accident, a woman at the property where the iron pipe fence was located declined to speak to press.

Multiple agencies responded, including Rancho Adobe, Petaluma Fire Department, Cal Fire and the CHP.

It is unclear if drugs or alcohol were a factor in the crash.

Staff Writer Martin Espinoza contributed to this report. You can reach Staff Writer Angela Hart at 526-8503 or angela.hart@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @ahartreports.