Three fatalities in crash on 10 Freeway near Palm Springs

Three members of an Orange County family were killed, including two children, and four others seriously injured in a crash Sunday morning on the 10 Freeway near Palm Springs, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Nine family members from Anaheim were traveling in a Chevrolet Suburban on the eastbound 10 Freeway, where the SUV collided with a Tesla Model 3 and crashed into the center divider, the CHP said in a news release.

Officers responded about 7:24 a.m. to the crash west of Haugen-Lehmann Way in Whitewater, where the Suburban had overturned, ejecting six people and partially ejecting one person, said Officer Jason Montez, a CHP spokesperson.

“Preliminary information indicates not all occupants in the Chevrolet Suburban were using safety restraint systems or seat belts,” the officer said.

An 8-year-old girl, a 12year-old girl and a 31-yearold woman were pronounced dead at the scene, Montez said.

The woman was identified as Cecilia Villalobos, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. The girls have not been identified.

Montez said a 3-year-old girl, a 7-year-old boy, an 11year-old girl and a 15-yearold boy suffered serious injuries. The 39-year-old man driving the Suburban and a 41-year-old in the front passenger seat were also injured, Montez said.

The driver and lone occupant of the Tesla wasn’t injured, according to the CHP.

Drugs and alcohol don’t appear to be a factor in the collision, according to Montez. Authorities are investigating whether speed was a factor and are trying to extract data from both vehicles.

The 10 Freeway was closed at Main Street until 3 p.m., when two lanes reopened; traffic was diverted at Main Street to Railroad Avenue, where cars reentered the 10 Freeway at Haugen-Lehmann Way. All eastbound lanes reopened at 3:30 p.m.