Local News in Brief : Capistrano Beach : 2 Killed, 4 Hurt as Car Being Towed Hits Truck

Two people, including a 4-year-old girl, were killed and four others were injured Monday when a pickup truck towing another vehicle on Interstate 5 in Capistrano Beach crashed into the center divider and overturned, authorities said.

Maria Contreras Osuna, 38, of Lynwood and Yesenia Vargas, 4, also of Lynwood were killed instantly in the accident, which occurred at about 12:15 a.m. just south of the Beach Cities off-ramp, California Highway Patrol Officer John Nicholson said.

Vargas and two of the injured were riding in the back of the northbound truck it was struck by the car being towed and the truck’s driver lost control, Nicholson said. Two others who were also riding in the back of the truck escaped injury.

Nicholson said the accident occurred when the large sedan being towed began swerving. The towed car then slammed into the pickup, knocking it into the center divider, where it overturned and the passengers were ejected.

Nicholson said the hitch between the two vehicles had been improperly attached to the spare-tire support on the truck.

The injured were taken to Mission Hospital Regional Medical Center in Mission Viejo, he said.

They were identified as Raymond Contreras, 20, of Lynwood, who was in critical condition with head injuries; Adriana Osuna, 19, of Lynwood, a passenger inside the truck’s cab, who was in stable condition with scalp cuts; Patricia Chavez, 5, also of Lynwood, who was in stable condition with a broken left leg, and driver Eduardo Siquero, 23, of Orange, who was treated and released for unspecified injuries.

An investigation was continuing.