Marine Killed in Crash

A Marine died Sunday afternoon and two people were injured when the four-wheel-drive vehicle he was driving careened off a dirt road in Oceanside and landed upside down in a creek, police reported.

Oceanside police spokeswoman Katherine Walraven said the crash occurred at 4:25 p.m. in rugged terrain north of Douglas Drive. The 25-year-old Marine, whose identity was withheld pending notification of relatives, apparently swerved to avoid a rut in the muddy road. Investigators believe the maneuver caused the vehicle to roll down a five-foot embankment, flip and land upside down in the creek, which contained four feet of water.

Passenger Angela Dowd, 23, of Oceanside, was able to free herself from the vehicle. A second passenger, 15-year-old Larry Robertson, also of Oceanside, was pulled from the vehicle bypassers-by. The Marine was trapped underwater beneath the vehicle and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Robertson was taken by a LifeFlight helicopter to Children’s Hospital, where he was in stable condition. Dowd suffered a dislocated shoulder and was treated at Tri-City Hospital and released.