Woman crashes into pole on Sonoma Highway
A utility pole on Sonoma Highway at Randolph Ave. was completely sheared off by this pickup truck on the morning of Aug. 19. The driver sustained minor injuries. Photo by Alec Peters.
On Thursday, Aug. 19, a Kenwood woman heading home from Santa Rosa on Sonoma Highway at around 6:30 a.m. apparently fell asleep and hit a utility pole right off the highway near Randolph Ave,
The California Highway Patrol estimates that Jean Wonnacott, 46, was going about 55 miles per hour when she sheared off the bottom part of the pole, smashing the passenger side of her truck. She had to be extricated from the vehicle and was sent to the hospital with minor injuries, according to the CHP.
Wonnacott was later arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence. CHP said she had told them she was taking methadone. The CHP is in the process of forwarding the case to the Sonoma County District attorney’s office for possible prosecution.
Sonoma Highway was closed down for three hours between Randolph Ave. and Greene St., with traffic diverted through a residential area of Kenwood.
PG&E crews worked all day and into the early evening to replace the utility pole.
