Big Rig Accident Shuts Down Westbound Interstate 10

All available westbound lanes were back open on Tuesday after a major accident shut down Interstate 10 at the Chiriaco Summit for nearly 12 hours, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Three big rigs and a passenger car collided around 2:30 a.m. near the Eagle Mountain Road exit.

A CHP spokesman said a construction crew performing maintenance on the stretch of roadway had temporarily blocked traffic while workers set up a cones to protect their work area. A 2007 Honda, driven by a 33-year-old resident of Mesa, Ariz., was the first car stopped behind the workers, followed by waiting two big rigs. Another big-rig approached and was unable to stop, hitting one semi, which caused a chain-reaction.

Officers on the scene told dispatchers it appeared one of the vehicles, an empty Fed Ex truck had been completely destroyed.

Two drivers and a passegner were injured prompting two Medivac helicopters to be called in to transport them to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs for treatment.

Westbound traffic was blocked at State Route 177, where officers set up detour signs that re-routed vehicles to the high desert and Highway 62, where they drove through Joshua Tree and Yucca Valley back to Interstate 10 near Desert Hot Springs.

The condition of those injured is not known.

One westbound lane, which was under construction, will remain closed as it was before the accident, according to the CHP.