At least 13 killed in crash with semitruck in Southern California
At least 13 people were killed and a dozen others were taken to hospitals after a gravel truck slammed into an overloaded sport utility vehicle just north of the California-Mexico border Tuesday morning, authorities said.
The crash happened about 6:15 a.m. PT at State Route 115 and Norrish Road in Imperial County, about 15 miles from the border, the highway patrol said.
The semitruck full of gravel hit a Ford Expedition carrying 25 people including the driver, the highway patrol said.
The SUV entered an intersection in front of the big rig before it was struck, California Highway Patrol Border Division Chief Omar Watson said.
There were only two seats in the SUV — the driver's seat and the front right seat. "Why that's so, we don't know," he said, noting that without seats, there were not restraints for everyone inside. Numerous people were ejected, he said.
"Obviously, that vehicle is not meant for that many people," he said.
Law enforcement officers at the scene of a deadly crash in Holtville, Calif., on Tuesday.Gregory Bull / AP
"Everyone in the vehicle was injured to some extent," he said, adding that a few who had minor injuries had already been released from the hospital.
The highway patrol later clarified the number of dead after an area hospital initially said at least 15 people were killed in the crash.
The semi was headed north on Route 115, south of Norrish Road, and the Ford was traveling west on Norrish, just east of 115, officials said.
"At this point, it's unknown whether or not the Expedition stopped at the stop sign, but it did enter the intersection in front of the big rig," Watson told reporters earlier Tuesday. "Subsequently the big rig collided with the left side of the Ford Expedition."
Twelve people, including the Ford driver, were pronounced dead at the scene, and another person died at a hospital, officials said.
"There's major, intrusive damage into the SUV," Watson said. Firefighters had to cut out the right front seat of the Ford to get people out, he said.
Investigators at the scene of a collision between a sport utility vehicle and a tractor-trailer truck near Holtville, Calif., on Tuesday.Bing Guan / Reuters
The victims were men and women between the ages of 15 to 53, Watson clarified Tuesday afternoon.
Officials were still working with the coroner's office Tuesday afternoon to identify those killed and notify their families, Watson said.
He said investigators were working with the Mexican consulate in case it was needed for family notifications. The area is so close to the border there is a lot of traffic between the two countries, he said.
It wasn't immediately clear how fast the vehicles were going.
The National Transportation Safety Board said it was conducting an investigation into the crash.
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