3 Killed, 2 Hurt in Crashes on Freeway Near Banning
Three people were killed early Monday in crashes on opposite sides of Interstate 10 near Banning that backed up traffic for hours, authorities said.
The first crash, on eastbound I-10 about 12:40 a.m., involved a minivan that apparently missed the exit to Casino Morongo, about 85 miles east of L.A.
The van, trying to back up to the off-ramp, was rear-ended by a tractor-trailer rig, the California Highway Patrol said. Two people in the van were killed and two injured, the CHP said. The truck driver was not hurt.
The identities of those killed were not immediately released.
A passenger, Jung Gi Soon, 58, of Los Angeles, suffered broken legs, a broken pelvis and a broken left arm, while another, Won Yong Jung, 43, of Los Angeles, suffered cuts to the head.
As paramedic helicopters landed on both sides of the highway to transport the injured, traffic came to a halt. That triggered an accident on the westbound side, the CHP said, when a tractor-trailer rear-ended a truck, knocking it into another big rig.
The driver of the first big rig was killed when his vehicle burst into flames.
People in the other vehicles weren’t hurt.
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