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Noe Garcia
He was hit by a drunk driver. Read below.
By JAY PRIVMAN
DEL MAR, Calif. - Noe Garcia, the groom for the popular older horse Lava Man, was listed in fair condition on Tuesday at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, one day after losing his left arm in an early morning traffic accident near Del Mar racetrack. The driver of the car that hit Garcia's van admitted he had been drinking, according to a California Highway Patrol report.
Garcia was transferred from the intensive care unit to a regular room on Tuesday, according to Lisa Ohmstede, the manager of public relations at Scripps Memorial. Ohmstede said she did not know how much longer Garcia would need to be hospitalized.
According to an accident report filed by the California Highway Patrol, Garcia was traveling southbound on Interstate 5 near Lomas Santa Fe Drive at 1 a.m. Monday morning when his Toyota Sienna van was rear-ended by a Chevrolet Camaro driven by Heriberto Castillo of Oceanside, which caused Garcia's van to overturn.
Garcia, 39, severed his arm in the accident. He was not wearing a seat belt, according to the CHP.
The accident was caused "due to Castillo's intoxication," according to the CHP report.
Following the accident, according to the CHP, Castillo, 22, "fled the scene" and drove northbound to Carlsbad. There, a motorist phoned the Carlsbad Police Department regarding an erratic driver. Castillo was pulled over, and damage to Castillo's car matched the damage to Garcia's car, according to the CHP. Castillo "admitted to being involved in this collision and drinking alcohol prior to the accident," according to the CHP collision report.
Castillo was booked into the nearby Vista Detention Facility jail, where he was being held on bail of $125,320, according to the San Diego Sheriff's department. Castillo was scheduled to be arraigned in court on Wednesday afternoon, according to the San Diego Sherriff's department.
Lava Man most recently won the Hollywood Gold Cup for the third straight year. His next scheduled start is next month's Pacific Classic, which he won last year.
Garcia had been off Sunday and returned to his Los Angeles-area home to visit his family. He was returning to work on Monday when the accident occurred, according to trainer Doug O'Neill.
"It's very sad," Tony Romero, Lava Man's exercise rider, said at O'Neill's Del Mar barn on Tuesday morning. "It's hard to believe. But thank God he's alive."
Noe Garcia
He was hit by a drunk driver. Read below.
By JAY PRIVMAN
DEL MAR, Calif. - Noe Garcia, the groom for the popular older horse Lava Man, was listed in fair condition on Tuesday at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, one day after losing his left arm in an early morning traffic accident near Del Mar racetrack. The driver of the car that hit Garcia's van admitted he had been drinking, according to a California Highway Patrol report.
Garcia was transferred from the intensive care unit to a regular room on Tuesday, according to Lisa Ohmstede, the manager of public relations at Scripps Memorial. Ohmstede said she did not know how much longer Garcia would need to be hospitalized.
According to an accident report filed by the California Highway Patrol, Garcia was traveling southbound on Interstate 5 near Lomas Santa Fe Drive at 1 a.m. Monday morning when his Toyota Sienna van was rear-ended by a Chevrolet Camaro driven by Heriberto Castillo of Oceanside, which caused Garcia's van to overturn.
Garcia, 39, severed his arm in the accident. He was not wearing a seat belt, according to the CHP.
The accident was caused "due to Castillo's intoxication," according to the CHP report.
Following the accident, according to the CHP, Castillo, 22, "fled the scene" and drove northbound to Carlsbad. There, a motorist phoned the Carlsbad Police Department regarding an erratic driver. Castillo was pulled over, and damage to Castillo's car matched the damage to Garcia's car, according to the CHP. Castillo "admitted to being involved in this collision and drinking alcohol prior to the accident," according to the CHP collision report.
Castillo was booked into the nearby Vista Detention Facility jail, where he was being held on bail of $125,320, according to the San Diego Sheriff's department. Castillo was scheduled to be arraigned in court on Wednesday afternoon, according to the San Diego Sherriff's department.
Lava Man most recently won the Hollywood Gold Cup for the third straight year. His next scheduled start is next month's Pacific Classic, which he won last year.
Garcia had been off Sunday and returned to his Los Angeles-area home to visit his family. He was returning to work on Monday when the accident occurred, according to trainer Doug O'Neill.
"It's very sad," Tony Romero, Lava Man's exercise rider, said at O'Neill's Del Mar barn on Tuesday morning. "It's hard to believe. But thank God he's alive."