Driver dies after crashing into ditch north of Santa Rosa

A man died Tuesday morning after driving a pickup into a ditch north of Santa Rosa, authorities said.

The single-vehicle wreck was reported around 7:15 a.m. on Calistoga Road, about a quarter mile north of the intersection with St. Helena Road, the Sonoma County Fire District said.

The driver, whose name is being withheld by authorities until relatives are notified, “lost control” of his GMC Canyon pickup and drove off the road, the CHP said in an news release.

The truck hit a tree and rolled over, coming to a stop upside down in a ditch. The driver, who was the only person inside the car, was pronounced dead at the scene, the CHP said. Nobody else was injured.

Authorities closed Calistoga Road in both directions between Harville and Porter Creek roads until 10 a.m., the CHP said.

The incident is under investigation. Initial witness reports suggested the man was driving “a little erratically” before the crash, said CHP Officer David deRutte.

The CHP is asking anyone who witnessed the incident to call the Santa Rosa CHP office at 707-588-1400.

You can reach Staff Writer Matt Pera at matthew.pera@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @Matt__Pera.