Coroner Names Victim of Highway 36 Slide
This is a press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office. The information has not been proven in a court of law and any individuals described should be presumed innocent until proven guilty:
On May 31, 2025, at approximately 5:53 a.m., deputies from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) Patrol Division responded to a report of an industrial accident in the 13000 block of Highway 36, Carlotta. The incident involved a significant amount of debris falling from the active landslide, resulting in a tragic fatality.
The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office Coroner’s Division responded to the scene. Following notification of next of kin, the deceased has been identified as Rodrigo Reyna-Sanchez, age 58, who was working for a local contractor.
The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office extends its deepest condolences to the family and loved ones
of Mr. Reyna-Sanchez during this difficult time.
Earlier:
Worker Killed in Slide Accident on Highway 36 Near Grizzly Creek
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Go with God.
RIP and condolences to the family.
We don’t know the details but it’s possible the effort to keep the highway open (instead of just focusing on the slide) could have been a contributing factor.
There are no easy fixes but unless something changes this situation could go on for a year or more.
My thoughts on how to move forward:
1) Hwy. 36 should be closed indefinitely to allow the workers to focus on the slide instead of having to keep a lane open and working in 30 minute windows;
2) The State should declare Redwood House an official alternate route and expend the funds to upgrade and maintain it until 36 reopens;
3) The BOS and our State reps should push for an emergency declaration which could provide economic relief for residents impacted by the closure and help secure funding for the first two points;
4) Logging trucks and other oversized rigs using Redwood House could be restricted to specific windows to avoid/minimize conflicts with cars and light trucks.
You have some good ideas. Do you live out Hwy 36 and have you driven Redwood House Rd? I know it took me over 1 hour to go 15 miles on Redwood House rd. I wouldn’t do it again unless I have another emergency. It is really dangerous especially if there is marine layer clouds. I don’t have the answers for alternate routes or how to fix Hwy 36. I do know it’s going to be a long time to fix Hwy 36. Also logging season has just begun and those trucks are on time schedules.
I’ve driven RH and it’s not ideal but trying to keep 36 open for “normal” travel increases the safety hazards and the time it will take to clear it.
I live in eureka and work at bridgevillle school.. I don’t know redwood house much and drive a Camry with 2 kids. That would be twice a day. Is it worth it?
It is not worth it somebody just crashed today on RH. This is toxic man up talk is what led to this tragedy. No body should be putting their lives at risk. This isn’t about ego it’s about safety
I don’t have an answer. I guess I would ask myself the same question? I live out by Bridgeville and avoid going to town a lot. I definitely have anxiety traveling Highway 36 or Redwood House Road. I wish there was a better answer.
Unfortunately there isn’t. Those are your choices really. RH is a grind if you have to do it frequently and then you realize why people load up at Costco with a month’s worth of stuff (if you’re not a grower with staff to feed). That spot on 36 I pray does not take another life as it as the problems are going to continue until the rest of it comes down, and RH can have it’s own issues too, with or without rain.
A tunnel from Rio Dell would be sweet
Thats besides the point.theres all kinds of ways to fix it but it doesn’t work from someone’s opinion.im sure you know that to.
Your thoughts arent based on knowledge of facts. Having one lane open with delays probably had nothing to do with the accident. This is dangerous work. Accidents can happen despite safety precautions.
You say keeping a lane open “probably had nothing to do with the accident” — which means you agree with my original comment: “it’s possible the effort to keep the highway open (instead of just focusing on the slide) could have been a contributing factor.”
Rigo was a good man with a beautiful family. He leaves behind a loving wife, two girls and a baby boy. Please pray for them in their grief.
I’m sending my love and praying for his family 💜
He actually has two adult male children he left behind as well. While they are adults he was still their Dad and I am sure this is devastating to them as well. Much love and prayers to you Jordan and Jake!
He was a guy that kept this county on there toes…
Sending love and condolences to his family and friends. He saved my butt more than once in his previous employment. RIP <3
My condolences to his family, friends and coworkers.
I appreciate everyone’s comments on this thread. I wish to nuance the following: “logging season has just begun and those trucks are on time schedules.” Why are there time schedules? In order to increase the return on investment, ie profit of those who invest in timber extraction. Why are hillsides (in general) unstable? Logging. And logging. And logging. Someone willing to work in the dark at 5:30 AM has lost his life. His children will never see their father again. One is a baby boy. But, you know, logging season has just begun and those trucks are on time schedules. I really REALLY think we need to connect cause and effect, and to connect different “separate” news items to each other. And if you agree that capitalist extraction has caused this man’s death, then I think the first step is to just A. go another way or B. not go. Right. Not go. Our convenience has been disrupted. But three children will never see their father again. Please, let’s connect the dots.
cutting in roads cause slides, not just logging. feel the loss without an agenda. rip rodrigo.
Yes roads cause slides, logging destabilizes steep hillsides and disrupts water uptake during the wet season causing erosion and washout. Everybody who doesn’t own all that land has to keep working for the man, to feed themselves and their families. Some log, some drive trucks, some fix the roads. A small percentage of that logging is from folks who can no longer make a living off their family grow, just struggling to keep their land. Everybody in the working class is slogging. If we stop the logging how many people are out of work? And without decades of controlled burning and clean forests at our back, can we safely stop logging? Change starts with the recognition that something isn’t working. This road at this location has always been bad, it needs significant demolition so why hasn’t that been started, what is delaying it? People live in the woods and some need to commute. Change happens when circumstances beyond our control force us to reconsider our next step
Thank you. God bless this man, his family and friends.
I think it’s becoming clear that the lives of rural working class people are expendable.
The lives of working class people, rural or not, have always been expendable to the billionaire class.
I am so thankful they are closing the slide it was a stupid choice to leave it open and let so many people risk their lives. I wanted to post this video because I think people need to rewatch it and really get how dangerous this slide is for everyone. It’s also a very stupid choice to have log trucks running on redwood house with the public. I do not want to be right again. Close it down https://youtu.be/ITxYnGarpPQ?si=MSszJyXpKPOcof03
After watching this video, I feel that this situation has not been handled properly. We are not being taken seriously when we express our fears to those in charge—we are afraid for our families’ lives. In the video, civilians can be seen standing under the slide alongside the workers! Who is responsible here, and why was this allowed? Why were we permitted to drive under this hazardous area multiple times a day? Safety protocols and OSHA regulations exist to prevent fatalities. People die when proper precautions are not taken to minimize risks.
Please start taking our concerns seriously. I do not want to receive a call saying that someone i love has been crushed by a logging truck or has crashed off a cliff
In spite of all the talk, everyone’s lives are expendable.
It’s the evil capitalists
I am so sickened by this. I have know this family for so long I consider them part of my extended family. My heart is literally breaking for his loved ones left behind. No matter what kind of man you all think he was, he came from a family that loves deep, loves unconditionally, and wears their hearts on their sleeves. IDC if was a good cop/bad cop. He went out and did his job. Which was extremely dangerous. One I don’t see many of the trash talkers stepping up to do. He was a good man and came from a very good family. Sending the peace and love and all the prayers in the world
Iam so very sad and sorry that the worker killed was Mr. Reyna-Sanchez. I knew him as one of Eurekas best police officers who did his level best to help keep our streets safe. May he RIP. My most sincere condoles to his family, friends, fellow workers and police officers.
Yea
Yeah, what a great guy…somehow they’re all saints in death…
https://lostcoastoutpost.com/2021/mar/17/officers-named-sac-bee-article-placed-administrati/
What a despicable, hateful comment to make. I don’t know you but I knew this hero very well. I can tell by your comment that you will never be half the man he was on your best day.
Interesting, I find this more hateful and despicable, especially from someone who carried a gun and wielded authority over those less fortunate than him….
As papers across the country picked up news of
the leaked text messages
which were filled
with deeply misogynistic, sexist and dehumanizing messages about women and evidenced a deep contempt for homeless residents, with one officer openly joking about rounding them up to push them into a burning building or using a helicopter to decapitate them.
Juan Pablo, your comment is just plain nasty, and I think you need to apologize for what you said about a great man, one of which you will never be!
Spot on justsayhin! He was a gentleman, family man and a wonderful police officer.
FYI…this very contractor, in the recent years with reckless behavior and lack of safety protocol nearly killed himself and two other workers, who required months of rehabilitation at a very similar accident of emergency slide repair at Last Chance Grade, still in litigation.
https://wildrivers.lostcoastoutpost.com/2021/mar/16/three-caltrans-workers-injured-falling-tree-while/
This was the same contractor that worked on this slide, so there may be a history of violating OSHA standards. I understand that this is difficult to hear, especially during this time. However, we witnessed rocks hitting pedestrian vehicles for days before this incident. This is not the first time this highly active slide has had trees fall or debris sloughing minutes after traffic was allowed through. This feels like willful negligence.
No, it is not disrespectful to be angry that not only workers’ lives were put at risk, but our families’ as well. It is not disrespectful to believe that human life should be prioritized. We pay taxes and have agencies in place to handle situations like this. Dismissing the dangers and simply saying, ‘It’s part of the job,’ is a failure to proactively follow regulations
https://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/Complaint.htm
Peace to the family. He died protecting the public, an honorable man. Go in Peace.
Amen!
Before grizzly creek there is a locked gate. That road goes all the way to shivley
I would love to hear more about that road?
May I ask what road you are speaking of?
Sgt. Sanchez gave me many breaks when I was homeless. He was a good man RIP. Condolences to the family