'She was an icon': Hanford family mourns beloved grandma killed in suspected DUI crash

71-year-old Estella Quintero was killed in a head-on crash on her way to Tachi Palace, where she works.

Nic Garcia Image
Tuesday, August 30, 2022
Hanford family mourns beloved grandma killed in suspected DUI crash
71-year-old Estella Quintero was killed in a head-on crash on her way to Tachi Palace. Police say the man responsible was driving under the influence.

HANFORD, Calif. (KFSN) -- A deadly crash over the weekend has devastated a Hanford family.

They're mourning the loss of their beloved matriarch as their patriarch fights for his life in the hospital.

71-year-old Estella Quintero was killed in a head-on crash on her way to Tachi Palace, where she works, early Saturday morning.

Her husband, Ignacio, was driving and remains hospitalized with serious injuries.

Police say the man responsible for the crash was driving under the influence.

We spoke with their granddaughter Lucy.

She tells us Estella was the center of attention, singing and dancing and showing her family all her love.

"This could have been prevented, didn't have to happen. My Nana did not deserve to die in a car crash by someone who's thoughtless, she didn't deserve to die like that."

Family and friends say Estella lit up any room she walked into. She loved to cook, making sure nobody around her went hungry.

"...Enchiladas, tacos, she was a huge breakfast person. She would wake up, brush her teeth, put on her lip liner, make breakfast. That's the type of person she was," says Lucy. "If you knew her, you are so blessed because she was an icon."

Lucy says her Nana's death leaves behind a hole in her life that will never be filled.

"It's a big part of our hearts. She was everything to us, she's been taken away from us and we're never going to be the same. She was the heart of our family."

Through their grief, they're holding on to hope for Ignacio.

"The only thing we're concerned about it how can he live without my Nana? Because he's never had to," says Lucy.

Raul Michael Ibarra Jr. was arrested in connection to this crash. He's in the hospital now but once released, he could be facing felony DUI and hit-and-run charges.