Tragic 91 Freeway Crashes Over The Weekend Linked To Alcohol: CHP

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — A 21-year-old man is dead, and two people were injured — one seriously — following a crash over the weekend on the 91 Freeway in Riverside that was linked to driving under the influence of alcohol, according to information from the California Highway Patrol and the coroner's office.

Alfredo Verganza-Lucas of Riverside was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash that was reported early Sunday morning on the eastbound side of the freeway, approximately 1,000 feet west of the Adams Street off-ramp, according to the coroner.

A preliminary report from the CHP showed that at about 3:16 a.m., the agency responded to reports of a crash at the spot.

Once on scene, the CHP determined that a series of crashes actually occurred there. The first was between a Jeep Patriot and a Kia Sportage. The Jeep became disabled in traffic lanes and the vehicle's occupants got out of the wreckage "and were pedestrians in lanes," according to the CHP.

Next, a commercial tractor-trailer heading east "took evasive action to avoid the Jeep and lost control," the law enforcement agency said.

The rig went over a concrete wall on the freeway's righthand shoulder and overturned, the CHP reported.

Next, an eastbound Toyota Camry also tried to avoid the stalled Jeep but hit it and Verganza-Lucas, who was standing in lanes and had been a passenger in the Jeep.

The crash impact sent the Jeep forward into an additional passenger standing in front of the Jeep. The unidentified passenger was sent to a local hospital with major injuries, the CHP reported.

The Toyota driver was unhurt though the big-rig driver "sustained complaint of pain," according to the CHP. Their identities were not released.

The Toyota driver was not under the influence; though the Jeep and the Kia drivers were both arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol, the CHP reported. The arrestees were not identified.

The crash remains under investigation. Anyone who may have witnessed the incident is asked to call the CHP's Accident Investigation Unit at 951-324-7210.