Davis Woman Seriously Injured During Highway 505 Traffic Accident

A Davis woman was seriously hurt in a traffic collision along Highway 505 Thursday afternoon and airlifted to UC Davis Medical Center for treatment. 

The California Highway Patrol said Rachel Ragatz, 28, of Davis, was driving a 1998 Toyota Rav 4 north along Highway 505, south of Wolfskill Road, at 12:17 p.m.

For reasons being investigated, Ragatz rear-ended a Cal Fire Ford F250 pickup truck that was parked in the center divider, facing north. The driver of the CalFire truck, Geoffrey Bravo, 41, was monitoring a brush fire that had erupted moments earlier on Winters Road, along with the

Ragatz was trapped in her vehicle after the collision and firefighters extricated her from the Toyota. She sustained major injuries and was transported by Life Flight air ambulance to UC Davis Medical Center.

The CHP closed both lanes of the highway for about 20 minutes to allow for the extrication process and for the air ambulance to land on the roadway.

Bravo and his passenger, Cal Fire firefighter Courtney Duncan, were not injured (although Duncan complained of pain in her head and neck) but were transported to Vaca Valley Hospital as a precautionary measure the CHP said.

The CHP is investigating the cause of the accident, and said that alcohol or drugs are not suspected in this collision.