A 16-year-old is fighting for his life after a solo car accident early Thursday morning sent the white Toyota Camry he was driving down Pillsbury Road across Woodward Avenue, through a masonry wall, and into the garage of a nearby home. 

The incident began when Manteca Police patrol officers spotted the white sedan traveling at a high rate of speed northbound down Pillsbury Road before they watched the car go through the stop sign, across all four lanes of Woodward Avenue, and punch straight through the sound wall and into the garage of the home where the vehicle came to rest. Debris from the masonry wall was found more than 150 feet south of the accident. It took Manteca Fire Department crews more than 30 minutes to extricate the driver before he was transported to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries. 

According to the Manteca Police, the driver – who has not been identified publicly – underwent surgery but is still in critical condition.

An investigation into the accident was launched, and the Manteca Police utilized the Nixle app Wednesday morning to encourage motorists to stay away from the area from Pillsbury Road to Heartland Drive and E. Woodward Avenue between Van Ryn Road and Adora Drive due to the ongoing investigation. The road remained closed for several hours and traffic was diverted for several hours with E. Atherton Road used to move motorists around the site. 

Residents in neighborhoods off of Pillsbury Road have been complaining for the past year about speeding and unsafe driving down the collector road in southeast Manteca.

Some have asked the city to try to put in placed traffic calming devices to force drivers to go slower or step up enforcement.

Councilwoman Debby Moorhead who lives in the area has tried to make addressing Pillsbury Road a priority for the city with limited success.

She has told of driving Pillsbury Road at the speed limit and having people turning onto the street several blocks away and closing the gap before she reached  the stop sign at Pillsbury Road.

Moorhead has also witnessed people passing by cutting through gaps in the landscaped median, driving on the wrong side of the road and then cutting back through another gap in the medians.

Other residents have told of similar incidents and constant excessive speed.

To contact reporter Jason Campbell email jcampbell@mantecabulletin.com or call 209.249.3544.