For a driver stranded during the summer, a Yuba-Sutter highway can seem like a desert, with pavement temperatures reaching 120 degrees.

"Nobody's prepared for an accident or a breakdown. Having a drink on hand is the last thing on a driver's mind," said Officer Jeff Larson of the Yuba-Sutter California Highway Patrol.

Just for that reason, CHP officers have — with the assistance of the Three Rivers Chapter of the Red Cross and Pepsi-Cola — begun carrying bottles of chilled water for stranded drivers and accident victims.

As officers leave CHP headquarters on Poole Boulevard in Yuba City, they grab eight or 10 water bottles supplied by the Red Cross from a refrigerator donated by Pepsi and put them in an insulated bag, said Larson, who does the same when heading to the scene of a major highway accident.

"If you're stuck on the south end of Highway 99, waiting for an hour or two for a tow truck and you've got no AC, it gets real hot real quick," said Larson. "I imagine a mom and two kids waiting for help, the kids getting hot and sweaty."

The water is also for accident victims and witnesses since ambulance crews and fire department rescue workers generally don't supply it, he said.

The Yuba-Sutter CHP initiated the new policy; it's not part of a statewide program, said Larson.

"It serves the purpose of serving humanity," he said. "It shows what a great community we have, with the Red Cross and Pepsi supporting us."

Contact Appeal-Democrat reporter Rob Young at 749-4710 or at ryoung@appealdemocrat.com.