PINE VALLEY, Calif. (KGTV) – A pickup truck fleeing a Border Patrol vehicle in Pine Valley lost control and crashed on Interstate 8 Tuesday night, ejecting multiple people from the vehicle, the California Highway Patrol said.
CHP officials said the single-vehicle rollover crash happened shortly after 6:12 p.m. In addition to CHP officers, ABC 10News learned Border Patrol agents and Cal Fire both responded to the incident.
Border Patrol agents tried to pull over a black Chevrolet Silverado as part of an “enforcement stop,” but the driver did not stop and “fled at a high rate of speed,” according to the CHP.
After trying to exit at Buckman Springs Road, CHP officials said the truck lost control across I-8 lanes and then rolled over onto a dirt median.
According to the CHP, 12 people were in the bed of the truck and the driver was the only person in the truck’s cab. The 12 people were unrestrained and ejected from the truck.
Cal Fire crews declared the incident a mass casualty incident, and a Cal Fire captain at the scene told ABC 10News that four people from the truck were severely injured -- one was airlifted to an area hospital and the three others were rushed to the hospital via ambulance.
CHP officials said the driver was taken into Border Patrol custody. They added alcohol and/or drugs were not suspected to be a factor in the crash.
