Three ID’d in pair of fatal crashes on Highway 12 near Santa Rosa

Three people who died in two separate crashes Monday morning on Highway 12, including a Sonoma mother and daughter who were described as selfless helpers, were identified Tuesday by the Sonoma County Coroner’s Office.

Alondra Bandt Valero, 21, was driving herself and her mother, Tomasa Valero Vargas, 44, to the Santa Rosa DMV at 8:20 a.m. Monday when their black Nissan Sentra lost control on rain-slicked Highway 12 just east of Oakmont Drive and drove into the path of a pickup truck headed the opposite direction.

Rear tires with little traction on the Nissan may have been a factor in the crash, the CHP said.

A second crash reported minutes later west of Santa Rosa at Highway 12 and Merced Avenue resulted in the death of third person, identified Tuesday as Sebastopol resident George A. Palma, 32.

Bandt Valero was a Sonoma State University student with ambitions to teach other college-aged students and to travel the world, said her 14-year-old sister, Kassandra Bandt.

Their mother, referred to by several family members by the nickname “Tomy,” was a seamstress for Bright Event Rentals in Sonoma, Kassandra Bandt said.

Valero Vargas had a close bond with her three children, the eldest being Bandt Valero, and enjoyed taking them on outings when she was not at work, said Claudia Bandt, Bandt Valero’s paternal grandmother.

“Her whole thought process was to study and study to get her family ahead,” said Claudia Bandt of her granddaughter.

“Tomy wanted to work to help her family,” Claudia Bandt said of Valero Vargas.

Bandt Valero and her mother were pronounced dead at the site of the Monday morning crash, the CHP said. The driver of the truck was transported to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital with minor injuries.

In addition to Kassandra Bandt, the pair is survived by Alan Bandt, 17, who is Bandt Valero’s brother and Valero Vargas’ son.

Bandt Valero’s father, Eduardo Bandt, who divorced from Valero Vargas about two years ago but continued to be her friend, also is coping with the dual loss, Claudia Bandt said.

A GoFundMe fundraiser to help cover funeral expenses and raise funds for Valero Vargas’ children garnered more than $2,600 in donations by Tuesday night.

Palma, the Sebastopol man who died in the other crash, was driving east in a Toyota Matrix when the car swerved into incoming traffic, first striking the left side of a Ford van headed west before crashing head-on with a box truck close behind, authorities said.

The Ford struck another car, though neither driver was seriously injured, the CHP said. The driver of the box truck suffered major injuries, though they were not considered life threatening.

Palma died at the scene. His mother, Janet Palma, said he grew up in Sebastopol and had graduated from Analy High School but declined to comment further about his life.

You can reach Staff Writer Nashelly Chavez at 707-521-5203 or nashelly.chavez@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @nashellytweets.