A 55-year-old woman from Jerome, Idaho, died and three juvenile passengers were hurt, one critically, after the SUV they were riding in overturned on a remote stretch of U.S. 93 north of Ely early Friday morning. Patricia Castellanos was not wearing a seatbelt when the vehicle rolled, and she was pronounced dead at the scene.
The crash happened just after 12:45 a.m. on Nov. 6 near White Pine County mile marker 63, about eight miles north of Ely, according to 2news.com. A black 2022 Chevrolet Suburban was heading south in the southbound lane when it lost control, ran off the road to the left, struck an embankment and flipped, coming to rest on its left side partially in the northbound lane.
Nevada Highway Patrol troopers responded to the scene, where Castellanos was pronounced dead. The three juvenile passengers riding with her were taken to an area hospital, and one was later flown to a children's hospital with life-threatening injuries, the outlet reported. As of the latest reporting, the cause of the crash had not been determined.
A Deadly Year on Nevada's Highways
The crash adds to a grim tally for the state's roadways this year. KSNV reported that Nevada Highway Patrol has investigated 26 fatal crashes resulting in 32 deaths so far in 2026. The agency said it is investigating this latest crash as well.
White Pine County's stretch of U.S. 93 in particular has seen repeated tragedy. In a separate incident, a southbound 2018 Ram pickup crossed the centerline and struck a northbound Nissan head-on, killing the Nissan's driver, 29-year-old Christopher Jon Frey, while a driver from Fairbanks, Alaska, also died in that same stretch of highway, per the same account from 2news.com.
Other Recent Crashes Near Ely
The region's rural highways have claimed other lives this year too. A crash on Highway 50 just one mile west of Ely killed two juveniles, ages 16 and 17, while the SUV's juvenile driver was treated for minor injuries, the outlet's report notes. Another fatal wreck on U.S. 93 at mile marker 116 in White Pine County killed 31-year-old Daragh Cornelius Conneely of Phoenix, who NHP said was the only person inside the pickup.
Farther back, a three-vehicle crash on U.S. 6 near Ely in November 2024 killed 38-year-old Lisandra Guardia, a passenger in an International box truck, according to foxreno.com. No additional details on the juveniles' ages or current medical conditions from Friday's crash have been released.
