A person was found deceased along Highway 101 between Hopland and Cloverdale this morning.
Hopland Fire Chief Mitch Franklin told us his agency was dispatched around 7:20 a.m. to the southbound lane of Highway 101 just north of the Geysers Road exit where a body was reportedly on the side of the roadway.
Upon arrival, Chief Franklin confirmed the subject was deceased.
Scanner traffic from this morning indicates authorities from Hopland and Cloverdale were dispatched to the scene where a reporting party in a white Dodge Sprinter van was reportedly waiting for them to arrive.
In January 2022, a Willits resident Amber Dillon was found deceased in the same area. Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office coroners would determine her cause of death was undetermined and showed signs she suffered a “traumatic blow to the head.”
The circumstances surrounding the body found along Highway 101 this morning remain unclear, and an investigation will be underway to determine the cause.
We have reached out to the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office for more information and will update readers when we have more to offer.
UPDATE 11/14/2023: The following is a press release issued by the California Highway Patrol regarding this morning’s incident:
On November 14, 2023, at approximately 0708 hours, a deceased male was located on the shoulder of southbound US 101, Geysers Road Off-Ramp, in Mendocino County. The cause of death is still under investigation, but based upon preliminary investigation, foul play is not suspected. The male has yet to be identified. California Highway Patrol -Ukiah Area personnel are handling the investigation with assistance from the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office. The California Highway Patrol-Ukiah Area would like to thank all medical and law enforcement allied agencies who responded and provided assistance.
Please remember that this story is unfolding. Information is being reported as we gather it. However, some of the information coming from witnesses and initial official reports could be wrong. We will do our best to get the facts but, in the case that something is inaccurate, we will update with correct information as soon as we can.