IRVINE — The investigation of a felony hit and run in Irvine in August has prompted the closure Saturday morning, Sept. 12, of a major intersection for most of the day, and drivers were asked to avoid the area and seek alternate routes.

 

Traffic Division investigators closed the intersection of Culver Drive and Main Street beginning at 5 a.m., according to the Irvine Police Department.

 

Cmdr. Noelle Smiley said investigators are mapping the intersection.

 

“Mapping allows us to use reference points to precisely measure exact locations of evidence (debris, skid marks, etc) on the roadway. In addition, the intersection itself has to be measured and mapped. Due to the size of the intersection and the amount of evidence to record, it is very time-consuming,” Smiley wrote in an email.

 

“Each data point takes time to measure with a laser surveying tool. We certainly move as fast as we can to minimize the impact to the community and will reopen the roadway early if possible. However, we owe it to the victim and the victim’s family to ensure it is done properly,” Smiley said.

 

Isadora Stabel, a 20-year-old woman from Irvine, who was a passenger in a car, died from injuries she suffered when the car was hit. She was wearing a seat belt, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office said.

 

The following closures will be in effect:

 

Southbound Culver Drive will be closed at Main Street, with drivers being directed westbound on Main Street;

Westbound Main Street will be close at West Yale Loop;

Eastbound Main Street will be closed at Paseo Westpark;

The two left-turn lanes from northbound Culver Drive to westbound Main Street will be closed.

The closures are expected to last up to 10 hours, the department said.

 

On Aug. 23, police arrested 40-year-old Antonio Calixto Navarette on suspicion of felony hit-and-run, felony DUI and murder a short distance away from Culver Drive and Main Street after a collision in the intersection involving a white Ford F-150 and a black Hyundai Elantra.