Sun might have been contributing factor in Foothill Peck collision
April 14, 2010
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula News
One person was injured in an early morning two-vehicle collision last week at Peck and Foothill roads that occurred after one driver said the sun temporarily impacted her vision.
According to Santa Paula Police Lieutenant Carlos Juarez, the April 8 collision was reported at 7:16 a.m.
SPPD officers and Santa Paula Fire personnel responded to a call of an injury accident at Peck and Foothill roads. Upon arrival they found that two vehicles were involved, a 1999 black Infinity and a white 2004 Ford F150 pickup.
The driver of the Infinity, 57-year-old Nicky Vannieuwburg, was driving eastbound on Foothill Road and when she arrived at the intersection of Peck Road. “She said the sun obscured her vision” and she collided with the pickup driven by Ignacio Arenas, 61, of Santa Paula, who was driving northbound and transiting the curve on Foothill Road to head west.
The vehicles collided almost head-on, and a female passenger in Arenas’ pickup, 51-year-old Consuelo Arenas, was injured. Santa Paula Fire EMTs and AMR paramedics treated Consuelo Arenas on scene, and Juarez said there is no record of her being transported to a hospital.
The collision is still under investigation, although the “sun was probably a contributing factor.” Juarez said Vannieuwburg told investigators “she attempted to shield her eyes” from the glare of the sun right before the collision occurred.
