A three-car crash sparked by a driver illegally passing cars on the shoulder left six people dead and four others hospitalized in Riverside County Monday.
Just before 2:30 p.m., Cal Fire and Riverside County Fire Department personnel responded to a three-car collision that started a small fire at Gilman Springs Road and Bridge Street in Lakeview, according to Cal Fire officials.
When responding officers arrived, all the cars were on fire, Cal Fire officials said. Ignited by the collision, the fire spread to nearby vegetation and burned more than 3.5 hectares.
Officials initially declared that four people died at the scene. Two hours later, officials announced that six people had died.
Four other victims were taken to a nearby hospital with minor to serious injuries.
The identities of the dead and injured victims had not been released Tuesday morning.
The crash was caused by a driver who tried to pass on the right shoulder but ran out of space, then hit the guardrail and swerved head-on into traffic, California Highway Patrol Sgt. Adrian Horta narrated KTLA5.
The driver of that vehicle died and the car’s front seat passenger was extricated from the car and taken to the hospital, KTLA5 reported.
A vehicle involved in the incident was pushed off the road into a field where it caught fire, killing three occupants. No details were available Tuesday morning about the other two deaths.