A 17-year-old female from Las Vegas died following a rollover crash Thursday night on Highway 160 near Gamebird Road, the Nevada Highway Patrol confirmed this morning.
Rhea Janolino, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was ejected from the vehicle, while the driver, also a 17-year-old female from Las Vegas, was secure in the vehicle.
Trooper Loy Hixson said the department received a call at approximately 11:36 p.m. on June 25. According to the preliminary investigation, the Mazda SUV was traveling southbound on Highway 160 when the driver drifted towards the center lane. She then overcorrected to the right, then back to the left which is when the vehicle overturned and the passenger was ejected.
Janolino was flown to University Medical Center Trauma where she “succumbed to her injuries” and was pronounced dead at 1:51 a.m., Friday. The driver was transported to Desert View Hospital in critical condition.
After the vehicle came to rest on its wheels on the highway, it was struck by a Hyundai Accent. The occupants of the Hyundai were transported to Desert View Hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
The cause of the accident is under investigation, but alcohol is not suspected as a factor, Hixson said.