Wrong-Way Driver Dies in Freeway Crash

A man suspected of drunk driving died early Saturday after crashing into a van carrying nine passengers, less than two miles from the site where eight people were killed in a similar accident a week ago.

Anthony Thedford, 32, of Riverside was driving the wrong way on the westbound San Bernardino Freeway and slammed head-on into the new van about 12:45 a.m., injuring nine people, said California Highway Patrol Sgt. Rich Carroll.

Two passengers, Ester Fisher, 67, and Dennis Powers, 35, both of Norwalk, were taken to Desert Hospital. Powers underwent surgery for a fractured heel and Fisher was released after being treated for minor injuries. The other seven passengers also suffered minor injuries.

Investigators reported that they smelled alcohol in the wreckage of Thedford’s car. Riverside County coroner’s deputies found no open containers inside the vehicle, a coroner’s spokeswoman said.

Just 1 1/2 miles away, two adults and six children died last Sunday in a fiery crash when Teodolo Gallardo Bermudes, 35, of Palm Springs allegedly smashed his pickup truck into a sedan that was carrying 11 people. The car, which did not have a gas tank cap, exploded.

Bermudes was charged with eight counts of second-degree murder, six counts of felony driving under the influence, felony hit-and-run driving and a misdemeanor count of driving with a suspended license.

Dale Crayton, 42, who was driving the van involved in Saturday’s crash, said the group was returning home after visiting his wife’s grandmother. Later in the day while waiting to retrieve his belongings from the wrecked van, which was being held in a police impound lot, he wandered into a nearby tire store. Inside, he saw a week-old newspaper detailing last week’s fatal accident.

“We were lucky,” Crayton said.

In a separate incident Saturday, four people were killed and two were critically injured in a crash on the westbound Pomona Freeway in the City of Industry.

The accident occurred about 2:30 p.m. east of Azusa Ave., according to a Los Angeles County Fire Department spokeswoman.

Times staff writer Irene Garcia contributed to this report.