Driver abandons young girl & woman after serious crash in Thermal

The California Highway Patrol is searching for the driver of a Cadillac who crashed in Thermal Saturday night, leaving a 6-year-old girl with major injuries behind in the overturned car.

Officers said a 22-year-old woman was also left behind in the wreckage, but she wasn’t injured.

The rollover happened Saturday, just minutes before midnight. The suspect was driving a 2000 Cadillac CTS southbound on Pierce Street, north of 66th Avenue, when the driver lost control of the car, the CHP said in the release.

The Cadillac went off the road to the left and overturned in a field, east of Pierce Street. The driver ran away from the crash and hasn’t been located.

The 6-year-old girl sustained major injuries in the crash and was taken to Desert Regional Medical Center. Both she and the 22-year-old woman are from Thermal, but officers didn’t say if they were related.

Officers said the relationship between the driver and passengers is unknown at this time.

The crash is still under investigation and authorities continue to search for the driver of the Cadillac. There was no information listed for the license plate number.

Anyone who may have information about the crash, or the suspect, is asked to call Officer Ponce with the Indio CHP office at 760-772-8911.