Three construction workers were killed early Friday when a big rig plowed through a highway work zone on eastbound Interstate 10 near Blythe, striking a parked attenuator truck, an unoccupied pickup and a water truck. The 44-year-old driver, a Redlands man, suffered severe head and leg injuries in the crash and was taken to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs for treatment.
The California Highway Patrol reported the collision around 5:17 a.m. on eastbound I-10 east of Intake Boulevard, according to MyNewsLA.com. Investigators said the big rig was traveling east at an unknown speed when it struck the parked attenuator vehicle, then a Chevrolet Silverado, before colliding with a water truck. Three construction workers in the area sustained fatal injuries in the pileup, the outlet reported.
The crash site sits near Intake Boulevard, according to Patch. U.S. Route 95 exits I-10 at Intake Boulevard and turns north.
Driver Flown Far From Home for Trauma Care
The big rig driver was taken to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, according to CHP. That hospital operates the only Level I Trauma Center serving the desert region from the San Gorgonio Pass east to the Arizona border, per WholeHealth Concierge. Serious injuries may require transfer to regional centers, while Palo Verde Hospital provides local acute care. Hoodline previously covered how a shooting near a Blythe school similarly required a critically injured patient to travel far from home for care, underscoring the isolation of the desert community's healthcare options.
CHP said alcohol and drugs were not believed to be factors in the collision. A SigAlert was issued shortly before 6 a.m. for the eastbound lanes, which were closed for cleanup and investigation, and motorists were advised to use alternate routes and avoid the area. The cause of the collision remains under investigation, the outlet reported.
A Crash Cushion Built to Absorb the Impact
The parked vehicle first struck in the pileup was an attenuator truck — a piece of equipment specifically engineered to protect roadway crews. Truck-mounted attenuators are energy-absorbing crash cushions attached to heavy trucks, designed to absorb impact and kinetic energy and shield construction workers positioned ahead of them, according to Royal Truck & Equipment. Despite that built-in buffer, the big rig continued on to strike two more vehicles.
This is not the first fatal pileup along this stretch of freeway. On September 7, another fatal four-vehicle chain-reaction crash occurred on I-10 near Blythe, west of Neighbors Boulevard; traffic had stopped near a construction area, and the crash killed one person and sent three others to the hospital, according to J&Y Law. The firm's report also noted road work in the area.
What California's Move Over Law Requires
California's Move Over law, codified in Vehicle Code Section 21809, requires drivers approaching stationary emergency or Caltrans vehicles displaying flashing lights to change lanes or slow to a prudent speed.
The identities of the three deceased workers, their employer, and the specific roadwork project underway on I-10 near Blythe have not been released. The cause remains under investigation.
