Car crash victim identified

Westmont High student, 16, was passenger in BMW

CAMPBELL — The 16year-old boy who was killed Thursday morning while riding in a car that crashed on a rain-slicked San Tomas Expressway has been identified as Gabriel Loreto Garate, a sophomore at Westmont High School.

The Campbell Union High School District identified the dead teen. The district will be providing mental health counselors and grief support to students and staff at Westmont.

“Nothing really ever prepares you for something like this,” Westmont High School Principal Abra Evanoff said. “The best thing we can do as a school is to come together and support each other and take care of each other.”

Students at Westmont High can request counseling services through their teachers or guidance counselors, while staff may access supportive services individually.

“Our school community is like a family, and when something like this happens, it affects us all,” said Robert Bravo, superintendent of the Campbell Union High School District. “That’s why we’re planning to make additional mental health and grief counseling services available to anyone who needs it.”

Loreto Garate was a passenger in a black BMW twodoor convertible that was traveling southbound on the expressway when around 8:09 a.m., the 18-year-old driver reportedly lost control of the car, according to Officer Ross Lee of the California Highway Patrol.

“He said he goes to change lanes to his left into the No. 1 lane and felt it start to shake,” Lee said.

The car veered into the center median near the overcrossing that connects West Rincon Avenue to John D. Morgan Park, and the passenger side of the vehicle hit a guardrail, Lee said.

The guardrail penetrated the passenger door and hit Loreto Garate, causing fatal injuries, Lee said. The teen was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver was taken to the hospital where he received stitches for a cut on his forehead and was released. He was not believed to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs when the crash happened.

Lee said Loreto Garate was skateboarding in the rain on the way to school when the driver, who he knew, pulled over and offered him a ride.

While it was raining at the time of the crash, it is unclear whether the weather was a contributing factor, Lee said.