Coroner identifies victims in fatal Highway 4 crash near Martinez
MARTINEZ -- Two people who died in a crash on state Highway 4 near Martinez last week have been identified by the Contra Costa County coroner's office.
Diana Zuniga, an 18-year-old San Pablo resident, and 49-year-old Antioch resident Jeremiah Smeby died in the two-car collision reported around 10:40 p.m. last Wednesday, according to the coroner's office. Zuniga died at the scene while Smeby died of his injuries the next day at John Muir Medical Center.
The crash happened on westbound Highway 4 east of Center Avenue and involved a gray Honda Civic and white Toyota Corolla, California Highway Patrol officials said.
The Honda allegedly hit the Toyota, causing both vehicles to go off the roadway and down an embankment, where they crashed into separate trees. Besides the two people who died, no one else was in either vehicle, the CHP said.
GoFundMe accounts have been created for both victims in the crash.
"She was only 18 years old with a whole life ahead of her and many dreams to fulfill, but God had other plans for her," Zuniga's mother Maria Zuniga wrote on a GoFundMe page at https://gf.me/v/c/hv4/babrr9-funeral-and-burial-expenses.
The account created on behalf of Smeby at https://www.gofundme.com/f/in-loving-memory-of-jeremiah-smeby said, "He was an excellent cook, movie buff, and had the most unique music taste. He was a loving father, son, brother, and friend. Truly an extraordinary man."
The cause of the crash is under investigation. Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the CHP's Contra Costa-area office at (925) 646-4980.
