Sonoma man, 22, dies in fiery Highway 12 crash

Authorities use dental records to identify the man who died in the July 9 wreck as Nico Olascoaga of Sonoma County.|

Dental records have revealed the identity of the 22-year-old Sonoma resident who died in a fiery wreck on Highway 12 near Dunbar Road in the early hours of July 9.

Nicolas Olascoaga, who graduated from Maria Carrillo High School in 2013, was named by the Sonoma County Coroner’s Office as the driver and sole fatality in an accident that occurred just after 4 a.m.

Olascoaga, who went by “Nico,” had a passion for the theater, performing arts and the Golden State Warriors, his mother Maria Olascoaga said in a obituary she posted on Facebook Wednesday after his identity was released.

He worked a performer at Disneyland’s Fantasmic! show in Anaheim, according to his mother’s post. Olascoaga was also an actor at the San Francisco Dungeon a theme park by Fisherman’s Wharf, according to his Facebook page.

In 2016, Olascoaga moved to Orlando, Florida, to work at the Walt Disney World College Program, his mother said. He had also attended San Rosa Junior College after high school.

“He showed us all how to laugh, learn from our mistakes, and how to be a better person overall,” his family said in a Gofundme posting. “There was never a dull moment with him, it was always a pleasure to hangout with Nico. Any time spent with him was a wonderful and joyous time.”

The cause of the accident is still unknown, said Sgt. Spencer Crum, spokesman for the Sheriff’s Office.

A memorial for Olascoaga will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Sonoma. His family is raising end-of-life expenses on a Gofundme campaign.

Contact Nick Rahaim at nick.rahaim@pressdemocrat.com.

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