Woman Killed After Car Swerves Into Guardrail

Wet roads Saturday contributed to several unrelated freeway accidents, including a Golden State Freeway crash that killed a Burbank woman, authorities said.

Olga Montano, 21, was fatally injured about 1:20 a.m. while traveling southbound on the Golden State Freeway, south of the Hollywood Freeway in Sun Valley, said California Highway Patrol Officer Gretchen Jacobs.

Montano lost control of the Volkswagen Jetta she was driving, swerved across four lanes and slammed into a cement post at the end of a guardrail, Jacobs said. Montano, who was wearing a seat belt, was pronounced dead at the scene, Jacobs said.

The single-car accident was under investigation Saturday. Police said Montano may have been drinking alcohol before the crash.

In a separate accident about three hours later, a two-car crash on the Golden State Freeway resulted in the arrest of one man on suspicion of drunk driving, authorities said.

Saustino Garcia, 21, of Sun Valley, was being held at the Burbank city jail on $50,000 bail, said Burbank Police Sgt. Ron Caruso.

The accident occurred near Hollywood Way about 4:40 a.m., authorities said. At least one person was ejected from a vehicle during the crash, police said. Authorities had no information regarding the number of people traveling in the two cars, how many were injured or the cause of the accident. The injured were transported to area hospitals, but their conditions were unavailable, authorities said.

Rain-slicked roads also contributed to an eight-car pileup Saturday morning on the westbound side of the Ventura Freeway at Woodman Avenue in Sherman Oaks, authorities said.

The 10 a.m. accident blocked three lanes of the freeway for more than an hour, said CHP Officer Bob Granieri. No one was seriously injured, he said.

Rain and oil on the roadway caused the slick conditions, he said.

“People just aren’t slowing down,” he said. “They are not making proper accommodations for the wet roads.”

In Santa Clarita, a man was killed in a two-car accident about 2 p.m. at Soledad Canyon Road and Rue Entree that may have also been rain-related. The man, whose name was not released pending notification of relatives, lost control of his car while traveling east on Soledad Canyon, said Sheriff’s Lt. Larry Gump of Santa Clarita Valley station.

The car hit the center divider, two trees and the median before it entered westbound traffic and was struck by another vehicle, Gump said. The man was transported to Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, authorities said.

Meteorologists said local residents can expect partly cloudy skies and more breezy weather today. The rain is expected to stay away today and Monday but another storm system will move in through Northern California, possibly creating a chance of showers in the Los Angeles area Tuesday, said Guy Pearson, a meteorologist with WeatherData Inc., which provides forecasts for The Times.

Pearson said temperatures today will be mainly in the low to upper 60s. On Monday, the weather should be fair to partly cloudy, with temperatures in the mid- to upper 60s, he said.

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Times Staff Writer Karima A. Haynes contributed to this report.