Mendocino County woman, niece killed in head-on crash

Authorities have identified the pair killed Saturday in a Highway 101 crash in Mendocino County as a 13-year-old girl and her aunt.

Bobbie Martin, 41, of Dos Rios, had picked up her niece, Victoria Stewart, at the girl’s Willits home. They were planning a day of cooking together when the crash happened about 1:40 p.m., the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office said.

Martin was driving up Highway 101 near the Reynolds Highway on the rain-slick roadway when her 2008 Dodge Ram 1500 crossed into oncoming traffic. A southbound semitrailer hauling lumber tried to avoid the pickup, but the two vehicles collided, causing the Dodge to spin and then burst into flames, deputies said. Martin and her niece died at the scene.

The crash closed the highway for more than two hours.

A light rain fell Saturday, just enough to dampen roadways and raise oil to the surface, which could have been a factor in Martin’s losing control of her truck, authorities said Monday.

You can reach Staff Writer Randi Rossmann at 707-521-5412 or randi.rossmann@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @rossmannreport.