Luis Diaz Mederos and Mario Montes Remembered After Fatal Two-Truck Crash Near Jal, New Mexico
Luis Diaz Mederos, 34, of Alton, Texas, and Mario Montes, 46, of Sanford, North Carolina, died in a two-truck crash near Jal, New Mexico, on October 15, 2026.
At approximately 1:30 a.m., Mederos traveled north on Orla Road in Lea County in a Kenworth truck that entered the intersection with New Mexico Highway 128 and struck a westbound Peterbilt driven by Montes.
Both trucks left the roadway and entered a bar ditch before a fire engulfed the vehicles, including the Peterbilt’s flammable cargo.
Lea County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrived at approximately 1:47 a.m. and found both drivers deceased near their trucks.
The Jal Fire Department extinguished the fire as authorities began examining the circumstances surrounding the crash.
Mederos and Montes spent much of their working lives on the road, and their sudden passing leaves communities in Texas and North Carolina mourning two lives lost far from home.
The Lea County Sheriff’s Office continues to investigate and has asked witnesses to call 575-396-3611.
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