NAVAL STATION ROTA, Spain — The wife of a U.S. servicemember stationed in Rota has died from injuries suffered in a two-car accident a week ago, a Navy spokeswoman said.
Noelia Ruiz Martinez died Tuesday at a hospital in Cadiz, according to Navy Lt. Allie Freeman.
Martinez and her husband, Petty Officer 3rd Class William Hernandez, were involved in a head-on collision Dec. 30. Hernandez, who is assigned to the base’s Supply Department, remains hospitalized recovering from a broken pelvis and femur.
The couple was driving on CA-603 in El Puerto de Santa Maria around 5 p.m. when they smashed into a car driven by a female U.S. sailor assigned to Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron Two. The crash occurred near the Venta Vaca restaurant, which is about two miles from the naval station’s El Puerto de Santa Maria Gate.
Martinez, a Spaniard originally from nearby Jerez de la Frontera, was driving at the time of the accident, Freeman said. She was listed in serious, but stable condition last week. The sailor in the other car was treated and released from the base hospital with minor injuries.
A funeral for Martinez was scheduled for Wednesday evening in Jerez. The Navy is investigating the accident.
The death of Martinez is the third involving people from the base in the last week. On New Year’s Day, a pair of sailors died in separate, unrelated incidents. Petty Officer 3rd Class Dexter C. Orasing fell unconscious on the way to a party, and Petty Officer 2nd Class Roland S. Atuwo died in a single-car crash near the base.
