Woman Dies After Car Hits Trees
A Thousand Oaks woman died early Thursday after her car veered across Erbes Road, drove through a center median and slammed into two trees.
Barbara Gradsky, 60, was pronounced dead at Los Robles Regional Medical Center in Thousand Oaks at 12:53 a.m., less than 90 minutes after the crash, said Mike Feiler, a deputy medical examiner.
Gradsky died of multiple blunt force injuries, he said.
“She may have just fallen asleep and hit the curb,” Feiler said
Sheriff’s officials said Gradsky was southbound on Erbes Road about 11:30 p.m. Wednesday just north of Laurelwood Drive when the crash occurred. The woman’s golden retriever climbed through a shattered window after the crash and was uninjured, said Sgt. Patti Salas of the sheriff’s Thousand Oaks traffic bureau.
“We aren’t sure why it happened yet,” Salas said. “We didn’t identify any skid marks and no brakes were applied. That’s what makes it a mystery.”
Salas said the dog walked about a half mile before scratching on the front door of a home on Woodside Drive.
A resident of the home, who had just returned from offering assistance at the crash scene, called the Sheriff’s Department. The dog was turned over to Gradsky’s relatives, Salas said.
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