Hwy 86 runs from Interstate 10 to Calexico. It passes through Indio, Thermal, Brawley and El Centro. Once known as “The Killer Highway,” stoplights were installed at some intersections to prevent broadside collisions. Anyone who’s driven the highway, knows it’s still dangerous because of the cross traffic. Now, once again, the highway is taking its toll.
Five Coachella Valley Women Killed In A Single Crash
On November 15, 2014, five women, aged between 76 and 87 were traveling to a luncheon in Palm Desert on Hwy 86 near Salton City. They never made it. Twenty women were expected at the luncheon. Six never showed up.
One of the women was driving a van and reportedly pulled out into the path of a Ford F-150 pickup truck. Five women were killed. A sixth woman in the van was critically injured with broken ribs and arms.
The driver of the pickup was reportedly uninjured. The four passengers in his truck suffered injuries, some major and some minor. Alcohol was not involved in the accident.
No One Is Safe on Hwy 86
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br>A CHP officer was even injured when an 18-year-old ran into the back of his cruiser parked on the shoulder of the highway.
Hwy 86 has been the scene to numerous truck accidents over the years and big rig spills. The spills haven’t all been hazardous. In one instance, 80,000 pounds of food headed for Food For Less grocery stores spilled.
There have of course, been fatalities, multiple vehicle crashes, and vehicles that have caught fire.
Windy Conditions on Hwy 86 Also A Factor In Some Collisions
On March 26, 2014, strong winds caused a number of collisions in Mecca on Hwy 86. With zero visibility, four separate collisions occurred. Three were rear end collisions.
On the same day, yet another CHP car was stuck as the officer was responding to another crash on the highway. Fortunately, the CHP officer was outside of his car when it was stuck from behind by a tractor-trailer. The patrol car had its emergency lights on when the tractor-trailer struck the CHP vehicle.
By the time the highway had been shut down, the damage had been done.
Victims of All Ages Killed On Hwy 86
There is no age that has been safe from harm on Hwy 86. From the five women aged between 76 and 87 who were killed in a single crash on November 15, 2014 to the two-year-old infant who died in an accident with a semi truck on the 86 Expressway on December 28, 2012.
In the latter of those two accidents, a big rig slammed into a Honda Accord killing the two-year-old boy and injuring two other family members. When the big rig struck the car at a high rate of speed, the Accord became pinned beneath the semi truck. Two other cars were also involved in the collision.
Preventing Accidents on Hwy 86
There are rarely any easy answers when a highway takes lives and ruins the hopes and dreams of family members who mourn the loss of a loved one. For a person driving Hwy 86 for the first time, the highway looks safe and well-maintained.
But when one drives the road more frequently, one sees drivers who turn onto the roadway without looking far enough into the distance or who misjudge the speed of other drivers. Others change lanes or make other turning movements without making sure it’s absolutely safe to do so.
Often the difference between making a journey safely or ending one’s journey prematurely in an accident, is simply not to allow another’s misjudgment to affect the safety of yourself and that of your passengers.
If you need a personal injury lawyer for a car accident on Hwy 86, or an injury you received in a motorcycle, truck, bicycle or pedestrian accident in Palm Springs, Palm Desert, any other city within the Coachella Valley, Orange County, or anywhere on the coast of California, inland, or in the desert, call Attorney Sebastian Gibson at (760) 776-1810 or toll free at (855) WHAT NOW. Put the experience of our law firm on your side and protect your rights.
