A collision between a truck and an SUV left thirteen dead, including at least ten Mexican nationals. This accident occurred not far from the border with Mexico in an agricultural area. Twenty-five people were seated in an SUV with a maximum capacity of eight people.
A collision between a crowded passenger vehicle and a heavy truck left thirteen dead, including at least ten Mexican nationals, as well as many injured, Tuesday morning in southern California, authorities said. The accident occurred around 6:15 am not far from the border with Mexico, in an agricultural area where many workers pass through every day. It involved a heavy truck towing two trailers crashing into a large Ford Model Expedition SUV crossing a national highway at a stop sign.
“There were 25 people in the Ford Expedition, including the driver. Unfortunately, twelve of the occupants, including the driver, died on the scene and one other person died of his injuries after being taken to hospital.” , said at a press conference Omar Watson, head of the California highway police in charge of the investigation. According to the Ford website, the Expedition model is designed to accommodate a maximum of eight people.
According to Chief Watson, the deceased victims are between 20 and 55 years old but at least one of the injured passengers was a minor, aged 16. At least ten of the dead were Mexican nationals, according to an official in Mexico’s foreign affairs secretariat. “We will continue to work closely with the US authorities” to come to the aid of Mexican nationals who have been injured, Roberto Velasco Álvarez added on Twitter.
The Californian police had as early as Tuesday morning appealed to the Mexican consular authorities “to determine who exactly was in the vehicle and to ensure to warn the families”.
Thrown onto the road
“A lot of people in the vehicle did not speak English. (…) We are close to the border and there are people who come and go daily for work”, explained Omar Watson. The area is known for its significant agricultural activity, especially the salads and other vegetables which are grown there year round and shipped throughout the United States.
Are they immigrant workers, legal or not? “We do not know. It is too early at this stage of the investigation to say what they were doing and where they came from,” insisted the police officer earlier, stressing that a multidisciplinary team of experts had been set up to shed light on the drama. Some injured spoke to investigators “but they did not provide enough information to help us understand why the collision occurred,” said Omar Watson. “Some were thrown onto the road, onto the ground, and died from their injuries. Others were found dead inside the vehicle and still others were injured and managed to escape through their own means, “he detailed.
The heavyweight is embedded in the side of the SUV
Omar Watson insisted the collision did not occur during a chase involving law enforcement. In the past, a number of road accidents have been linked to interventions by the border police pursuing persons suspected of having entered the United States illegally. The driver of the truck, 69 years old and who was only “moderately injured”, should be able to help investigators trace the facts with his testimony. The accident occurred on National Highway 115, near Holtville, about ten kilometers north of the border between the United States and Mexico.
Images of the collision broadcast by local media show a white heavy truck, its two trailers jacketed across the road, the front recessed into the side of a large burgundy-colored SUV. The cab of the truck is almost intact but the other vehicle, although still on its four wheels, appears to be badly damaged.
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