Driver killed in Indio wrong-way crash identified as South Dakota man

A wrong-way driver killed in a head-on crash in Indio was identified today as a 38-year-old South Dakota man.

Ronald Cook, from the small town of Sisseton, died at a hospital about an hour after the three-vehicle crash that was reported about 7 a.m. Thursday on Avenue 42, just west of Jackson Street.    

The driver was traveling against traffic in the eastbound lanes when his car struck a pickup truck head-on, according to Indio Police Department spokesman Ben Guitron. The truck then jolted backward and into a car behind it,
Guitron said.    

Cook's  passenger, a woman whose name was withheld, was also taken to John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital in Indio for treatment of what were described as serious injuries, according to police.

Paramedics treated several patients at the scene for minor injuries, Guitron said.

The intersection of Avenue 42 and Jackson Street was completely closed for several hours for the crash investigation and clean-up.