Authorities identify two who died in recent Contra Costa County crashes
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Authorities identify two who died in recent Contra Costa County crashes

Two of three people who died in crashes in rural areas of Contra Costa County last week have been identified by authorities.

According to the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office, Gabriel Biadgi, 34, of Antioch, was one of two people who perished in a fiery head-on crash on Highway 4 in Brentwood Wednesday night. Authorities have not identified the second person who died in the wreck, pending notification of family members.

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The crash shut down the eastbound lane of the highway near Balfour Road for about seven hours.

An electric SUV involved in the crash caught fire, forcing fire crews to let it burn itself out because the SUV’s lithium battery was spewing hydrogen flouride into the air, authorities said. That chemical can be lethal if ingested, officials said.

A hazardous materials team from Contra Costa County helped clean up following the wreck.

A day earlier on Kirker Pass Road, 26-year-old Amber Smith, of Fairfield, died in a two-vehicle collision that also injured two others.

A 14-year-old boy who was a passenger in Smith’s Ford suffered major injuries but survived, authorities said.

Smith tried to turn left from westbound Hess Road onto Kirker Pass Road and pulled in front of a Toyota Sienna that hit her, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Kirker Pass Road is a major bypass road that connects Walnut Creek with Concord and Pittsburg. The Toyota was heading toward Pittsburg, and the Ford was trying to turn toward Walnut Creek when the crash happened.

The Toyota’s driver survived with what the CHP deemed minor injuries.