Truck Flips on Freeway; 7 Riding in Back Ejected

Four women and three children riding in the bed of a truck were seriously injured Sunday when a tire blew and the truck flipped over as it pulled out of traffic on Interstate 5 in San Juan Capistrano.

The group was bound for Tijuana for a day of shopping, one hospital official said.

Although California Highway Patrol officers released few details about the accident and victims, hospital officials said the most critically injured passengers were at Mission Hospital Regional Medical Center in Mission Viejo. There, one woman was reported in critical condition and two of the children--estimated to be 1 and 4, --were in serious condition, a spokeswoman said.

A 16-month-old girl and three women were taken to San Clemente Hospital, according to Jami Piearson, nursing supervisor. She said the baby was in stable condition, while the adults were treated and released by mid-afternoon.

Tire Bursts at 65 m.p.h.

The CHP said the driver and another man were riding in the front cab about 8:30 a.m. when, just south of the Junipero Serra off-ramp, the tire burst in the southbound lane closest to the center divider.

The driver, whom CHP officers estimated was traveling 65 m.p.h., tried to steer onto the center-divider shoulder. Instead, CHP officers said, the truck flipped over, ejecting all four women and three children riding in the back.

Officer L. LaSage, who went to the crash site, was not available to elaborate on his brief press statement as to how the truck overturned.

“I guess they were going to Tijuana to shop for the day; that’s what the one gal who spoke pretty good English told me,” Piearson said. “She was about 22.” The other women thrown from the back of the truck are 20 and 43 years old, she added.

CHP Officer Judy Underwood said it is not against the law for passengers to ride in the back of a truck, as long as their weight does not overload the bed. Children under 14 years old must be accompanied by adults, she added.