CHP investigating Highway 101 fatality in Santa Rosa

A 65-year-old man was struck and killed Friday morning after he attempted to cross Highway 101 in Santa Rosa during the rush-hour commute, the CHP said.

The unidentified man, who authorities said was homeless, attempted to cross the northbound lanes of the highway near the Baker Avenue onramp. He was struck in the fast lane by a Hyundai sedan and pronounced dead at the scene.

The collision occurred at 7:40 a.m., about 6 minutes after the CHP received a report of a man leaning over a guardrail adjacent to the highway, Officer Brian Wood said.

Wood said the man had been asked to leave the Baker Avenue Denny’s near the highway. A manager at the restaurant declined to comment.

The man’s body lay in the road, covered in a yellow tarp, while CHP officers investigated the crash. Items of clothing and an orange bag containing boots were scattered near the body.

Wood said the man had no picture identification on him. Authorities said it could take time before they are able to discern his identity and contact his next of kin.

The CHP identified the driver of the sedan as a 26-year-old Santa Rosa woman. Wood said she reported that she was driving at a speed of 65 mph when the car struck the man.

“She saw him at the last second,” Wood said. “She tried to avoid him and couldn’t.”

CHP Officer Ethan Thompson consoled the driver, who was visibly upset as she and a passenger who had been in the car sat with their backs against the center divider. They left after being interviewed by investigators from the Sonoma County District Attorney’s Office.

Wood said it appears the case will be ruled an accident.

He noted the short distance from where the man was struck to the Baker Avenue overcrossing, which presumably would have provided the man safer passage.

Two lanes of the highway were closed for two hours while the CHP investigated the crash.

You can reach Staff Writer Derek Moore at 521-5336 or derek.moore@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @deadlinederek.