Sac crash claims 2 Roseville college students

Friends and families are grieving the loss of two young Roseville women, one of whom was killed instantly and the other fatally wounded when the car they were in collided with a fire truck in downtown Sacramento early Saturday. The second woman was taken off life support early Monday.Authorities said Kirsten Ross, 20, of Roseville was driving a Honda Civic westbound on L Street at about 2 a.m. when the car collided with a Sacramento Fire Department fire truck headed south on 9th Street toward a Land Park house fire.The car was pushed for nearly half a block before the truck was able to come to a stop, Fire Capt. Jim Doucette said."It's almost like stopping a train," he said of stopping the fire truck, adding it was the first fatality "in years" involving a Sacramento Fire Department vehicle.Though firefighters immediately attempted life-saving procedures, 20-year-old Roseville resident Nancy Gonzalez, a passenger in the Honda, was pronounced dead at the scene, Doucette said.Ross was taken to UC Davis Medical Center in critical condition, where she was later taken off life support so that her organs could be donated, said her mother, Hazel Tetrick of Roseville.Sacramento Police Capt. Matt Young said an investigation into the crash could take months. He said preliminary reports indicate alcohol might have played a role, but had no further information."We want to make sure the investigation is very thorough, comprehensive and complete," he said.Efforts to reach the Gonzalez family were unsuccessful by press time, but members said she was a student at Sierra College who planned on a career in nursing, according to local TV news reports.The two women had been best friends since attending Woodcreek High School together, Tetrick said.She recalled her daughter as a bright-spirited and athletic young woman who was the center of a constellation of friends."She was always there for her friends," she said. "They could call her and she would be there in a heartbeat. She was giving, loving – thought of other people first."Tetrick said her daughter was a third-year student at Sacramento State and had decided to major in pre-law on Friday. It was a longtime goal of hers to become a lawyer, borne of a desire to help the underdog, she said. "She used to say, 'Somebody needs to help these people against these big corporations,'" Tetrick said."She would have been such an asset to this world," Tetrick added.At the Foothills Boulevard Starbucks where Ross worked part-time for the past three years, a makeshift memorial sign on Monday paid tribute to the barista. It was the second commemoration of a Ross there – a plaque in one corner of the coffee shop honors Kirsten's father, Jeff Ross, a well-known regular Starbucks customer who died several years ago.Employees described Kirsten as the consummate people person and a skilled barista who commanded a large following of devoted customers."Everybody knew her," said store manager Nancy Carpe-nello. "I've had customers come in and they're just crying at the register." "She took the time to get to know the customers, she knew all their names," added co-worker Deanna Lamb. "So many customers are asking 'what can we do?' It's been overwhelming."Brittni Monson, another employee, said Ross engaged customers so well they wouldn't even realize they were waiting for their drinks."She was just outgoing, bubbly and if we were having a rush, she'd always be the calm one," Monson said.Doucette said crews had operated the truck's lights and sirens. But some of Ross' co-workers noted Ross suffered from a hearing disability in her right ear, which they speculated could have played a role in the crash.Carpenello said a fundraiser was being planned at the coffee shop. For more information, call 797-1458.