More Pedestrians Killed in I-5 Fog

In the second such accident in two days, two adult Mexican nationals--a brother and a sister--were killed early Sunday morning when they were struck by a vehicle as they attempted to cross Interstate 5 at Palm Avenue in heavy fog, the California Highway Patrol reported.

On Saturday, a 26-year-old Mexican man was killed as he crossed I-5 near Coronado Avenue in the early-morning fog.

The freeway stretch north of the San Ysidro Port of Entry is notorious for pedestrian crossings as illegal migrants coming into the United States head northward.

For a time, four lanes of I-5 had been closed, with officials hoping that the narrower freeway would see fewer deaths. Instead, even more pedestrians congregated in the widened center divider as they poised for their dash across the freeway.

Caltrans officials decided in August to return the freeway to full width and instead build a 10-foot-high fence along the median to discourage the crossings.

The victims in Sunday’s incident were Maria Nieves Guzman, who was said to be about 60 years old, and her brother, Carmen Guzman, about 52, said William Leard, an investigator for the San Diego County medical examiner’s office.

A CHP spokesman said the two were struck by a van driven by Rodney Schmitt, 32, of Imperial Beach, as he was entering the northbound lanes of I-5 at Palm Avenue. Schmitt was not cited.