Van hits icy patch on I-15

Timothy Pratt and Christina Littlefield

Friday, Dec. 26, 2003 | 11:13 a.m.

A van full of people apparently headed home to Mexico hit an icy patch and rolled down a 70-foot embankment this morning along Interstate 15 just south of the Nevada border, resulting in two deaths.

The accident happened on I-15 southbound about two miles north of the Bailey Road exit at about 5:30 a.m., California Highway Patrol spokesman Adam Cortinas said.

The vehicle, a 1995 Chevy Astro, hit the ice while traveling in the middle lane. It spun out toward the embankment and rolled down, causing a 35-year-old woman who was not wearing a seatbelt to be thrown out of the van.

She and the driver, a 59-year-old man, died of massive head injuries, Cortinas said. The names of both were not revealed, pending notification of their family.

Five other passengers -- four females from 10 to 53 years old and a 4-year-old boy -- were taken by ambulance to University Medical Center. UMC had no comment on the condition of those passengers this morning.

The location of the accident -- about 14 miles south of the California state line -- saw a number of collisions this morning, Cortinas said.

The Nevada Highway Patrol closed Interstate 15 near Primm, on the Nevada side of the border, so that a Mercy Air helicopter could land there, according to highway patrol spokesman Trooper Loy Hixson. The highway was reopened by 10 a.m.

The California side of the freeway also was closed for holiday travelers in both directions for several hours.

The fatal accident involving the Chevy Astro happened while snow was falling and may have been the second of about 15 collisions.

There were no other fatalities reported and California Highway Patrol removed ice patches from the road this morning.

Rain this morning left black ice on Interstate 15, and the Cajon Pass at the San Bernardino Mountains was shut down because of weather conditions there.

Cortinas said the Chevy Astro seemed to be headed to Tijuana. "It appeared they were going home," he said.