Roll of Honor
Incident
Officer Noreen Vargas was killed when a tire from a tractor-trailer struck her vehicle. Officer Vargas was traveling eastbound on Interstate 10 just west of Vincent Ave, in the city of West Covina, en route to follow up on a felony case. The rear tires of the tractor-trailer dislodged from the truck's axle and flew across multiple lanes of traffic, and struck her vehicle, which was traveling in the opposite direction. The force of the impact crushed the roof of her vehicle, and Officer Vargas was killed instantly. She is the first female officer of the California Highway Patrol to be killed in the line of duty. Officer Vargas had served with the California Highway Patrol for eight years.
Survivors
She is survived by her 14-year-old daughter, parents, two brothers, and twin sister.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-CA-793E6386- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Officer Vargas gave the California Highway Patrol 8 years.
Thank you for your service to the people of California. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Officer Vargas.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Officer Noreen Allison Vargas is one of 10,088 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 31% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In CA, 719 of 1,837 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 39.1% of this state's fallen. That is 8.1 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.
At California Highway Patrol, 151 of 233 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 64.8% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Noreen Allison Vargas's cause is highlighted.
How Noreen Allison Vargas Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Noreen Allison Vargas is highlighted in Nov.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
232 officers from California Highway Patrol are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
