13 dead, several children injured in ‘very sad’ crash near U.S.-Mexico border

Authorities have confirmed to news outlets that at least 13 people have died after a Tuesday morning collision between a semi truck and an SUV near the border of California and Mexico.

California Highway Patrol Division Chief Omar Watson said a Ford Expedition, carrying 25 people, collided with a semi truck full of gravel about 6:15 a.m. Tuesday near the U.S.-Mexico border in Holtville, California, according to a report by USA Today.

Staff with El Centro Regional Medical Center previously told the media that 15 people died and that 27 were in the SUV.

Images from the scene of the wreck show a burgundy SUV, with the semi truck impelled into the driver’s side of the vehicle. The SUV’s windshield is shattered, and debris is scattered on the ground around the two vehicles.

“The patients are, of course, going through a little bit of a difficult time, as you can imagine,” said Dr. Adolphe Edward, chief executive officer at the hospital. “This is a major accident. We are taking care of them in the emergency room department.”

The highway patrol reported that 12 people died at the scene, including the SUV driver, and one died at the hospital, Watson told the media. All children in the SUV survived the crash. Several were injured, who were between the ages of 16 to 55. The victims who died were between 20 to 55, Watson said.

The vehicles collided before 6:15 a.m. PT at State Route 115 and Norrish Road near Holtville, about 50 miles west of Arizona and 10 miles north of the border.

The cause of the crash was not immediately available, according to Watson. However, there have been a number of crashes reported near the area where California and Mexico’s border meet over the last several decades, the Times reported. Some of those collisions involved immigrants trying to cross into the U.S., with a significant number of crashes occurring during chases by local police.

“It would be premature for me to speculate or discuss what caused this collision. What we have to keep in mind is that 13 people died in this crash,” Watson said. “It’s a very sad situation.”

Investigators are working to determine the identities of those killed in the crash, so that family members can be contacted. Border Protection was on the scene to assist the Imperial County Sheriff’s Office, but the agency was not involved with the incident.

“This was not a border patrol pursuit,” Watson said.

This is a developing story.