Lack Of Seatbelts Cited In I-10 Crash That Killed 2 Girls, 1 Woman

WHITEWTER, CA — Two girls and a woman were killed Sunday in a crash on eastbound Interstate 10 near Haugen Lehmann Way in the Whitewater area.

The crash was reported at 7:27 a.m. Sunday in the eastbound lanes near Haugen Lehmann Way, according to Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department.

Investigators determined that a 2022 Tesla Model 3, driven by a 31- year-old Indio man was eastbound on I-10 west of Haugen Lehmann in the No. 3 lane and a 2001 Chevrolet Suburban, driven by a 39-year-old man from Anaheim, was traveling the same direction in the No. 2 lane when they collided, causing the driver of the SUV to lose control and crash into the center divider and overturn, ejecting six occupants, and partially ejecting another.

Some of the SUV occupants — all of whom were related, and all Anaheim residents — were not believed buckled in, according to California Highway Patrol Officer Jason Montez.

Three female occupants of the Suburban were pronounced dead at the scene, ages 8, 12 and 31. Only one of them, Cecilia Villalobos, 31, of Anaheim was publicly identified as of Monday morning.

Four other occupants of the SUV suffered major injuries, including a 3-year-old girl, a 7-year-old boy, an 11-year-old girl and a 15-year-old boy. The driver suffered moderate injuries and a 41-year-old front passenger suffered minor injuries, Montez said.

The driver and sole occupant of the Tesla was uninjured, he said.

An air ambulance carried two of the injured victims to a trauma center, where they were being treated for major injuries, he said.

Interstate 10 eastbound was closed at Main Street until 3 p.m., when the left two lanes were reopened, according to the CHP. All lanes were reopened by 3:30 p.m.