Rafu Wire and Staff Reports
HERMOSA BEACH — A 79-year-old grandmother was in critical condition with injuries suffered in a single-vehicle crash on July 29 in Hermosa Beach that left her 83-year-old husband dead.
The crash occurred at 9:30 p.m. at the intersection of Armour and Reynolds lanes, which is on the border between Redondo Beach and Hermosa Beach, said Sgt. Robert Higgins of the Hermosa Beach Police Department.
After leaving a family event about two long blocks away, the woman was driving a 2002 Toyota Prius west on Armour Lane, going downhill, when it struck a retraining wall near Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, police said. Her passenger, identified as Robert Masato Hirashima of Torrance, died at the scene.
Witnesses said the Prius was traveling in excess of 60 mph and did not appear to brake before hitting the church’s retaining wall, police said. Both air bags deployed.
Alcohol or drugs did not appear to be a factor in the crash, according to Higgins, who said that Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach police, along with the California Highway Patrol, are examining the vehicle to determine what happened.