MORENO VALLEY: One dead, two injured, in 3-vehicle rollover traffic collision
Deputies arrived at the location within minutes of the dispatched call. John Strangis photo
MORENO VALLEY – One person died and two were injured in an early-morning, three-vehicle, rollover traffic collision Monday, Jan. 16. The deadly accident happened at the intersection of Lasselle Street and Kentucky Derby Drive in Moreno Valley.
Riverside County firefighters and deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Moreno Valley police station were dispatched to the location about 1:12 a.m., after nearby residents and other motorists called 911 to report to rollover accident.
Callers told emergency dispatchers that one of the vehicles had smashed into a concrete light pole and the pole had been knocked down and was partially blocking the roadway. Callers also advised one of the vehicles had flipped over.
The involved vehicles were described as a BMW, a burgundy sedan, and a silver sedan. The BMW was completely destroyed in the accident. The other two sedans sustained moderate damage.
Officials work to free the mortally injured driver from this BMW. John Strangis photo
Eleven firefighters from two engine companies and one truck company responded to the accident, according to Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Public Information Officer Tawny Castro.
Deputies arrived at the scene of the accident within minutes and verified the multiple-vehicle, major injury wreck.
Deputies at the scene reported one of the involved vehicles was on its side and smoking. An occupant from inside the overturned vehicle had sustained major head trauma and other injuries and was trapped inside his wrecked vehicle.
Firefighters arrived minutes later and immediately began to evaluate and treat the three people injured in the accident. Officials quickly determined the victim trapped inside his vehicle required extrication and requested additional resources to the location.
While firefighters and paramedics treated the victims, deputies called for the temporary closure of both directions of travel on Lasselle Street between Avenida De Plata and Kentucky Derby Street.
Two victims were transported to an area hospital with minor injuries. John Strangis photo
AMR medics transported two of the injured victims to an area hospital by ground ambulance. Their injuries were listed as minor, according to Castro.
The victim who had been trapped inside his vehicle succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident, Castro explained.
The victim’s identity has been withheld pending notification of his family.
Southern California Edison and Moreno Valley Public Works employees were summoned to the scene to replace the light pole that was struck and damaged.
Lasselle Street remained closed for several hours while deputies conducted an investigation into the fatal traffic collision.
The cause of the accident has not yet been determined.
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Trevor Montgomery spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg in an off-duty accident.
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including the Robert Presley Detention Center, the Southwest Station in Temecula, the Hemet Station, and the Lake Elsinore Station, along with many other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, Personnel and Background Investigations and he finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator.
Trevor has been married for more than 26 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and has 13 children and 12 – soon to be 13 – grandchildren.