Trucking news and briefs for Thursday, March 4, 2021:
Southern Calif. crash between truck, SUV leaves at least 13 dead
A two-vehicle collision early Tuesday morning involving a truck and an SUV in southern California about 10 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border left 13 people dead and another 13 injured, according to local reports.
NBC San Diego reports that around 6:15 a.m. Tuesday, a Ford Expedition occupied by 25 individuals crossed the path of a truck pulling two empty belly-dump aggregate trailers on State Route 115 at Norrish Road. Twelve people inside the SUV were reportedly declared dead at the scene of the crash, and another later died at an area hospital. The remaining 12 people inside the SUV were transported to hospitals to be treated for injuries. The truck driver, identified by California Highway Patrol as Joe Beltran, 68, of El Centro, California, was also injured and transported to a local hospital, the report notes.
California Highway Patrol Chief Omar Watson said in a press conference the cause of the collision is currently unknown and that it’s unclear whether the SUV ran a stop sign or stopped and didn’t see the truck coming.
According to the CHP accident report, “for reasons still under investigation,” the Expedition “entered the intersection directly in front of” the truck, causing the truck to hit the left side of the SUV. The accident report also noted that it’s still unknown if alcohol or drugs were a factor in the crash.
