Soledad, California Firefighter Struck, Killed by Hit and Run Driver at Car Fire Scene

When they arrived, they found an abandoned van fully engulfed, parked on the right shoulder. Their fire engine was parked up-wind, in front of the vehicle. 32 yr. old Soledad Firefighter Mario F. Cunha was rolling out a fire hose to begin to extinguish the fire.

A Chevy Corsica was approaching the scene, in the #2 lane, at an unknown rate of speed and struck the firefighter. The impact flung him on top of the fire engine and onto the ground. He was declared deceased at the scene. Firefighter Cunha had been with the Soledad Fire Department since April 2002 and lived in Soledad.

The Chevy fled the scene and continued north.

Approximately an hour later, the suspect and Chevy were located by Gonzales Police Department just outside the city of Gonzales. The California Highway Patrol arrested the unlicensed driver who was a 28 year old female from Salinas. The CHP booked the suspect into the Monterey County jail for vehicular manslaughter and felony hit-and-run.

North-bound traffic on US101 was diverted for approximately 3 and a half hours. The California Highway Patrol