I-10 east reopens hours after fatal crash in Whitewater; victim identified

A man who was killed in a fatal crash on eastbound Interstate 10, around Whitewater, on Thursday morning has been identified as 34-year-old Martin Garcia of Yucca Valley, according to the Riverside County coroner's office.

The crash was reported around 8:45 a.m. Thursday west of Haugen Lehmann Way, California Highway Patrol Officer Jason Montez said. Traffic in the area was snarled for hours afterward.

Two drivers, Garcia in a Toyota Sienna and another in a Ford F650 construction vehicle, were driving in the left lane on I-10 eastbound. Montez said the Ford driver slowed down to enter the center median area where construction work was taking place. For reasons still under investigation, Garcia failed to slow down and crashed into the rear of the Ford.

The Toyota deflected off the Ford and crashed into a Nissan in the lane immediately to the right, causing minor damages to the Nissan, Montez said.

The Ford was pushed to the left, where its left front crashed into the center median guardrail.

Garcia was pronounced dead at the scene. Officers do not suspect drugs or alcohol were involved, and Montez did not know whether Garcia was wearing a seatbelt.

The other drivers, a 47-year-old man from Victorville in the Ford and a 37-year-old woman from Desert Hot Springs in the Nissan, did not have reported injuries, Montez said.

The entire freeway was blocked while police investigated the crash, Montez said. The right lane and right shoulder were later opened in order to allow traffic to flow, but traffic was backed up throughout the day. A SIGAlert was issued at 9:45 a.m.

All lanes were reopened by 5:12 p.m.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Whitewater crash closes I-10 for hours; victim identified