Dinora Gomez Killed in Wrong-Way Crash on Highway 101 near Jolon Road
Monterey County, CA – January 11 – A woman was killed late Saturday night following a wrong-way collision on Highway 101 in Monterey County, according to the California Highway Patrol. The fatal crash occurred at approximately 9:51 p.m. on January 11, 2026, on Highway 101 just south of Jolon Road. Investigators said a 2016 Toyota Tacoma, driven southbound in the northbound lanes by 65-year-old Paul Lee Cooper, collided head-on with a northbound 2006 Toyota Corolla operated by 33-year-old Dinora Maribel Gomez of Salinas. The force of the impact pushed the Corolla into the southbound lanes, where it was struck by a 2014 Honda Accord driven by a 36-year-old man from King City. Emergency responders arrived at the scene, where Gomez was pronounced dead as a result of her injuries.
