SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - Five people died in a three-car pileup on SR-67 in Poway on Friday afternoon, including a 68-year-old grandfather who was on his way to apply for a home remodeling loan.
Loved ones believe Roberto Martinez Oros was driving to a bank in Poway from his Ramona home when he was killed in the crash near Iron Mountain Drive.
“We are just numb. It’s like empty. He was my first love. He was the first person who loved me," said Yesenia Martinez, Roberto's daughter.
The crash left vehicles unrecognizable, with one car going into a ravine and sparking a small brush fire. Dashcam video from a passing car shows a wrong-way driver in a pickup crashing into Martinez's Honda Civic before striking another pickup.
Investigators are still working to determine the cause of the deadly collision.
Martinez immigrated to San Diego from Mexico more than four decades ago and had four children and three grandchildren. Just a week before the crash, he learned he would soon have another grandchild.
"He was so excited. He was telling everybody how there was going to be another Martinez in the family," Yesenia said. “He was caring, honest, and loved his family.”
His son, Roberto, described his father as the "hardest working man" and said he wished he "was half the man he was."
The elder Martinez worked two jobs, at Home Depot and Popeye's. Years of hard work allowed him to save enough to buy a home.
"He worked hard to achieve the American dream and he achieved it. His legacy is long,” Yesenia said.
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to help the family transport Martinez's body back to Mexico to be buried with his wife.
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