Last Updated on June 17, 2020 by CCAR Staff
A 5-year-old child and her parents died Tuesday when a minivan they were in was hit from behind by a semi truck on the 10 Freeway in Ontario, pushing it into the trailer of another semi, the California Highway Patrol said.
The San Bernardino County Coroner’s office early Wednesday, June 17, identified the victims as Rachel Miller, 27, of San Dimas, Aubree Hardy, 5, of San Dimas, and Aaron Hardy, 25, of Fontana.
Miller and Hardy were the parents of daughter Aubree, the office said.
The minivan was stopped for traffic.
Witnesses said the driver of the big-rig that hit it was going about 60 mph in heavy traffic, with no indication he braked before impact around 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, said CHP Officer Jesus Garcia, a spokesman for the agency.
The semi pushed the 2002 Chrysler Voyager into the trailer of another big-rig it was behind on the eastbound 10 Freeway west of Haven Avenue, Garcia said. Ontario Fire Department personnel declared all three in the minivan dead at the scene.
The driver of the semi that hit the minivan, a Van Nuys man, was taken to Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton with moderate injuries, Garcia said.
Garcia said Wednesday that cell phone distraction or drugs or alcohol were not involved in the crash.
He said the driver had a head injury from the crash, and told CHP investigators on Tuesday that he thought he had hit the back of another semi-tractor trailer rig, and did not initially realize there was a minivan between the two.
The crash remained under investigation. Garcia said Wednesday he did not know if the driver remained hospitalized. Investigators have up to a year to decide if they will file anything with the District Attorney’s Office, he said.
