Posted on 12/11/2003 12:26:26 PM PST by WestCoastGal
5 die as big rig smashes SUV A dozen more packed into Suburban hurt in Mecca
By Lois Gormley and Darrell Smith The Desert Sun December 11th, 2003
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MECCA -- Five people were killed and a dozen more injured Wednesday when a Chevrolet Suburban filled with people pulled out in front of a semi on Highway 86 Expressway and was hit broadside ejecting virtually everyone inside.
Officials said there were 18 people in the sport utility vehicle when it was struck at the intersection of Avenue 66.
The Suburban is designed to seat nine people, according to the automaker’s Web site. No one in the vehicle wore seatbelts.
The impact sent the Suburban careering (careening)into a third vehicle, a red Nissan, said California Highway Patrol officer Eric Peña.
The Riverside County Coroner’s office responded to the scene, and crews began wrapping four bodies in white shrouds before lifting them onto gurneys and rolling them through the soft, chalky dirt to two waiting vans. A fifth person died later at Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs.
In addition to those killed, 10 more suffered major to moderate injuries and were taken to area hospitals for treatment, Peña said.
The driver of the Suburban, the driver of the Nissan, Indio resident Luz Durieux, age unknown, and one other occupant of the Suburban, 18-year-old Martha Chavez of Mexico, suffered minor injuries.
Durieux chose to seek her own treatment, and Chavez was taken to John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital in Indio.
Peña said the driver of the Suburban, Jesse Lopez, 30, of Mexico was taken to JFK with minor injuries.
An officer was sent to the hospital to remain with the driver, who faces possible criminal charges, he said.
The driver of the tractor-trailer rig, Jorge Villasenor of Winterhaven, was not injured.
The identities of many involved were unconfirmed Wednesday evening, but Peña said that based on conversations with some of the injured, the occupants of the Suburban appeared to be undocumented immigrants from Honduras and El Salvador.
Guadalupe Diaz, 33, Carmen Castillo, 30, Jose Valdez, age unknown, and Blanca Enriquez, 20, were also among those taken to JFK for treatment.
Martha Rubio, 18, an unidentified 14-year-old child, Maria Alfara, 24, and Alicia Sibrian, 21, were all taken to Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, the CHP reported.
The identities of the other injured were still unknown late Wednesday.
The collision occurred about 2:30 p.m. when the Suburban, heading westbound on Avenue 66, pulled out onto Highway 86 south into the path of the semi.
The truck, southbound on the expressway, broad-sided the Suburban, spinning it around. It struck the Nissan, which was sitting at the stop sign on eastbound Avenue 66, and came to rest off the shoulder near a light pole.
U.S. Border Patrol agents, who were en route to their assignments, were in the left turn lane on the northbound expressway and witnessed the collision.
Supervisory Border Patrol Agent Tony Holladay said the agents stopped to assist with first aid and traffic control.
It was unclear why so many people were in the vehicle or where it was going. The Suburban had Arizona plates, but little else was known Wednesday night.
The occupants of the Suburban were not being pursued by agents, Holladay said. **********************************(My comments) Notice the Arizona plates on the truck, probably a coyote driver. It was reported that they were all illegals and spooked when they saw the border patrol trucks. They pulled out in front of the big rig truck to flee. This happens all the time, either car chases, or runners in the desert.......the next one could involve more innocent people in their accidents. Not to mention our tax dollars at work paying for hospital bills!!
Here's what happens when your government refuses to enforce immigration and border laws and the third world knows it. This is what happens when sovereignty of our country is being assaulted by our leaders. Disgusting.
No, this is what happens when you swerve in front of a big rig. Liberals are always trying to pin the blame upon others, upon society, upon laws, upon government. No one forced the driver to cut in front of a truck. He had total free will.
Maybe I should enlighten that poor, befuddled reporter.
Republicans: "We need cheap labor to underbid Americans and keep wages low"
Democrats: "We need lots of immigrants to enlarge the base of our Social(ist) Security program"
R's and D's Together: "Hey, you're not so bad looking after all"
< cue sceen of fawning couple smooching and walking off into the sunset >
Tune in for our next episode where we find out who wears the pants in this family!
You're certainly entitled to your wild opinions but you're not entitled to present lies as facts.
George Soros has no association with the Libertarian Party.
"...The identities of many involved were unconfirmed, but Peña said that based on conversations with some of the injured, the occupants of the Suburban appeared to be undocumented immigrants from Honduras and El Salvador..."
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That terminology has always cracked me up. When will the leftists finally start calling them ILLEGAL ALIENS instead of pretending not to notice the 800 lb. gorilla in the room?
~ Blue Jays ~
It is such an unfortunate name, it reminds me of the Saturday Night Live skit where they interview Al & Susan Qaeda and the recent problems they've experienced...
~ Blue Jays ~
Once you get east and south of Indio, English is pretty much an unknown language.
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