Healdsburg Woman Dies After Truck Hits Utility Pole

A Healdsburg woman died when her pickup truck crashed into a utility pole Tuesday night, a Healdsburg police sergeant said.

The Sonoma County coroner's office identified the woman today as 47-year-old Kathleen Yvonne Zeiger.

Healdsburg Sgt. Luis Rodriguez said police received several calls about the crash at 9:10 p.m. Officers found that Zeiger's pickup had overturned and severed a utlitiy pole in the 16000 block of Healdsburg Avenue, near Passalacqua Road.

Zeiger was found dead inside the truck, he said.

On Wednesday, Healdsburg Police Sgt. John Haviland said that Healdsburg Cpl. Tanya Potter and Det. Nick Garcia would be handling the crash investigation, which could take up to two weeks, he said.

Haviland said he had no immediate word on what might have caused Zeiger's truck to veer off the road, which is straight ahead at that spot and is not in a hazardous configuration or a steep turn.

"We have no indication at this time whether alcohol was involved, but that's a matter to be looked at in the investigation," he said. Haviland said he has had no contact with Zeiger's family and no information yet on her status or state of mind.

The accident left electrical, cable and phone wires hanging over the road, Rodriguez said. The California Highway Patrol assisted Healdsburg police, and the road was cleared around 4 a.m., Rodriguez said.

Crews from AT&T and other utilities installed a new pole Wednesday morning and remained at the scene Wednesday afternoon to hook up new telephone cables.

Bay City News Service contributed to this report.