More Questions About School District Van After Rollover On I-10
The accident involving the van carrying students from Desert Mirage High School caused a huge traffic backup that stretched 4 miles on Interstate 10 on Thursday in Palm Desert.
The crash happened around 9 a.m. near the westbound Cook Street exit. CHP investigators said the van carrying students from the “Catch A Dream” program blew a tire, and flipped over on the interstate.
In all, six people in the van were transported to local hospitals after four of them were cut out of the wreckage, according to Cal Fire officials. Monica Mora, 17, a student from Thermal, was thrown from the van during the accident, and she was found in the center divider of the freeway. A CHP spokesman said it didn’t appear she was wearing a seat belt.
The cause of the crash is the van’s driver’s side back tire. It blew sending the van flipping. The day of the accident KESQ contacted the Coachella Valley Unified School District for a statement about the crash and van maintenance. They wouldn’t provide us information.
On Monday, after asking the district again for more information, KESQ filed a California Open Records request for information about the van’s maintenance and the district’s fleet service protocols.
The driver, Maria Alvarez, 31, of Coachella and the passengers, Kara Rycek, 33, of La Quinta; Graciela Rodriguez, 42, of Coachella; Maria Mora, 41, of Thermal and Alonso Sanchez, 28, of Calexico, were all taken to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs.
The “Catch A Dream” program is designed to expose all children to the potential to go to college. The students in the van were on their way to Ontario International Airport to fly to California State University in Chico to explore the campus, according to officers.
A second accident on the westbound side halted traffic for a short time. The CHP said a Ford Focus and a silver Infinity crashed near the Washington exit at 9:40 a.m. Both cars were moved to the center divider, and traffic was allowed to move.
