Veronica Denise Cerda dies in fatal Leon County car crash

Veronica Denise Cerda dies in fatal Leon County car crash

Fatal Leon County car crash death of Veronica Denise Cerda – Obituary

Veronica Denise Cerda, 26, of Houston, was one of five people who died in a devastating two-vehicle crash Saturday afternoon on Interstate 45 in Leon County. The accident occurred near Leona at approximately 3:17 p.m.

The Texas Department of Public Safety stated that a 2016 Dodge pickup truck was traveling southbound when it left the road, hit a guardrail, and entered the center median. The vehicle then vaulted over the cable barrier and collided head-on with a 2023 Ford F-150 going north. Both vehicles caught fire following the crash.

Crews from the Centerville and Leona Volunteer Fire Departments responded quickly, working to extinguish the blaze and extract the victims. Veronica Denise Cerda was among those pronounced dead at the scene by Justice of the Peace Jeff Carr.

She was riding in the Ford F-150 along with her mother, Veronica Cerda, 53; her sisters, Rebecca Cerda, 20, and Daniela Cerda, 18; and the driver of the vehicle, Hermenegildo Melendez, 55—all of whom also died in the collision.

The driver of the Dodge truck, 43-year-old Toriano Fair of Dallas, survived but sustained serious injuries and was transported to CHI St. Joseph Regional Hospital in Bryan.

An investigation into the crash remains ongoing.