From Deseret News archives:
Utah family identified in deadly California crash
Omar Sanchez, 22, of Riverdale, was killed early Sunday morning when the pickup he was driving lost control on I-80 and was broadsided by a truck.
The crash happened around 6:40 a.m. Sunday on the Bryte Bend Bridge above the Sacramento River. The California Highway Patrol said a 2006 Nissan Frontier was towing a Corvette on a trailer when it lost control and jackknifed.
The pickup hit the north side of the bridge and was struck from behind by a box truck.
Sanchez, who was driving the vehicle, was killed instantly. So was his 22-year-old wife, Dulce, who was riding in the back seat. Their children — 3-year-old Destiny Cornejo and 13-day-old Sadie Sanchez — were taken to a local hospital, where they died.
"It's unknown if it was speed, if maybe the driver was starting to fall asleep and just started to doze, or if maybe his load was just too heavy for his vehicle," CHP officer Lizz Dutton told CBS13 in Sacramento.
The TV station broadcast images showing CHP officers removing an infant carrier from the wreckage of the pickup. CHP officers said the children were not secured in car seats when the crash occurred.
The driver and the passenger in the box truck were not injured.
Media reports in Sacramento said the family was visiting other family members in Woodland, Calif., and were on their way back to Utah when they died.
Contributing: Associated Press
E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com
