Woman pried from wreckage becomes 2nd death from east El Paso drunk driving crash

UPDATE, Oct. 21: Police said a woman pried from the wreckage of a drunk driving crash in east El Paso earlier this month has now died, becoming the second fatality from that collision.

45–year-old Claudia Del Hierro had been hospitalized since Oct. 7 with critical injuries. She becomes the city's 61st traffic death of the year, compared with 54 at this same time last year.

Authorities previously said her car was rear-ended by a drunk driver who had died at the crash scene.

UPDATE, Oct. 8: Police on Thursday identified 74–year-old Frederick Martinez as the man killed in Wednesday's east El Paso traffic crash and 45 –year-old Claudia Del Hierro as the woman critically injured.

Investigators said they believe Martinez was drunk and speeding when his vehicle rear-ended Del Hierro's car at the intersection and then flipped on its side.

She remained hospitalized Thursday in critical, but stable condition. Police said Martinez was the city's 57th traffic death of the year, compared to 49 at this time a year ago.

ORIGINAL REPORT, Oct. 7: EL PASO, Texas -- A man was killed and a woman who had to be pried from the wreckage of a nasty traffic crash Wednesday morning was rushed to a local hospital in critical condition, according to police and fire officials.

The two-vehicle collision happened just after 9 a.m. at Edgemere and Lee boulevards near Bill Sybert Elementary School in east El Paso, and police investigators remained at the scene many hours later.

Police said a 74-year-old man was pronounced dead at the crash scene, while an injured woman that fire crews said they had to extricate was listed in critical by stable condition at the hospital.

Investigators have not yet indicated what caused the crash.