Three-vehicle, head-on crash possibly caused by drowsy driver

March 30, 2019 Trevor Montgomery

MORENO VALLEY — Two people were hospitalized after a three-vehicle, head-on traffic collision in an unincorporated area between the cities of Moreno Valley and San Jacinto early Saturday morning, March 30. This morning’s accident, which was possibly caused by a driver who fell asleep at the wheel, happened on Gilman Springs Rd. near Bridge St.

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CHP, Hemet PD, and Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department, along with AMR and other emergency personnel, were dispatched to the accident around 1:10 a.m., after receiving multiple reports of a two-vehicle, head-on collision that also involved a third vehicle. 911 callers reported at least one person was trapped inside the wreckage of his car.

An AMR ambulance crew was first to arrive at the scene and found three vehicles, described as a white Dodge sedan with heavy front-end damage; a white SUV, which also sustained heavy front-end damage; and a silver sedan with moderate front and driver’s side damage.

The driver of a white Dodge, who reportedly fell asleep at the wheel, was trapped inside his wrecked vehicle and had to be extricated from his car before he was transported to an area hospital. Nathan Wilking/RVC News photo

AMR confirmed that a male victim was trapped inside the white Dodge and reported that vehicle parts and other debris were spread across the roadway, which was blocked and impassable.

When firefighters arrived, they used the “Jaws of Life” to extricate the trapped driver from inside the Dodge, while medics evaluated and treated the other vehicles’ occupants.

After being extricated from his wrecked Dodge, the driver was transported to an area hospital with injuries listed as moderate. The driver of the SUV was also transported by ground ambulance to an area hospital. That driver’s injuries were described as moderate.

Two occupants from the silver sedan were reportedly uninjured and declined further medical treatment at the scene.

During CHP’s investigation, they determined the driver of the white Dodge had possibly fallen asleep at the wheel. The Dodge then veered into the oncoming lane of travel, leading to the three-vehicle crash.

None of the victims’ injuries were considered life-threatening, and CHP’s investigation is ongoing.

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Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery, 47, moved last year to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, The Valley Chronicle, and Anza Valley Outlook; as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County and Mountain Echo in Shasta County.

Trevor 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, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with 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, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.

Trevor has been married for more than 28 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 15 – but soon to be 16 – grandchildren.