Rocklin man dies in Sierra College Blvd. crash

High gas prices didn't keep Labor Day travelers off the road in California, but local law enforcement officials reported a fairly quiet holiday weekend with few accidents and one reported fatality in south Placer County. On Sept. 6, officials released the name of a man killed in a single-vehicle crash Sept. 3.Michael Stow, 26, of Rocklin, succumbed to injuries he sustained last Saturday when his 2003 Toyota Tacoma rolled over on Sierra College Boulevard just south of Del Mar Avenue just after midnight, said Kelly Baraga of the Newcastle office of the California Highway Patrol.Stowe was reportedly driving at a high rate of speed when, for unknown reasons, he drifted off the right side of the roadway and hit a concrete culvert overturning his truck and fully ejecting the unbelted driver. The truck burst into flames.Stowe was declared dead at the scene, having reportedly suffered multiple blunt force trauma. The crash remains under investigation and it's not clear at this point if alcohol was a factor, officials said. Despite record-shattering gas prices, AAA of Northern California reported nearly 3.8 million travelers were on the road in the state, with travel is up by almost 1 percent compared to last year.Within the Auburn city limits, things were quiet. "It was pretty much a normal weekend as far as law enforcement goes," said Nick Willick, Auburn's chief of police. "The community was not impacted in any significant way by the holiday."According to police logs the department arrested six people for driving under the influence from Sept. 2 through Sept. 5, but Willick said that doesn't necessarily mean the drivers were in Auburn."We had a saturation patrol with Rocklin police department and we worked with them for the 'Beware of the Seven' campaign," he said.The education campaign is a coalition of seven law enforcement agencies in Placer County, which includes the Rocklin, Auburn, Lincoln and Roseville police departments; the Folsom State Recreation Area Police Department; the Placer County Sheriff's Department and the California Highway Patrol.The coalition of law enforcement groups team up in an effort to limit injuries and deaths related to driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Auburn officers were in Rocklin at DUI checkpoints and if they made the arrest it goes on their books. Additionally, Auburn had extra officers on patrol during the holiday weekend.Gold Run CHP officials said "nothing major" happened in its area during the holiday. "We had 13 accidents from Friday through Monday," said Officer Arturo Gutierrez. "Four were minor injury accidents and the remaining nine were property damage only."Additionally, he said there were three arrests for DUI, none of which resulted in traffic accidents.Penne Usher can be reached at penneu@goldcountrymedia.com.