Investigators Wednesday are trying to determine what caused the driver of a car to cross into oncoming traffic and collide with a carpool van, killing all four people — believed to be members of the same family — in the car, including two young children.
The crash occurred at 10:25 a.m. Tuesday at Sierra Highway and East Avenue M in the Palmdale area when the driver of a Kia Sephia traveling northbound on Sierra Highway veered across the center divider for unknown reasons and was struck by an Antelope Valley Transit Authority Van, according to a statement from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Palmdale Station.
According to coroner’s Assistant Chief Ed Winter, three people died at the scene: a man about 20-25 years old; a woman about 20-25; and a girl about 1-2 years old. Another girl, about a year old, died at a hospital, Winter said.
An investigator told reporters at the scene the victims are believed to be a mother, father and their two children.
KCAL9 reported they were from Hesperia.
Their names were withheld, pending notification of relatives.
The van driver was taken to a hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries, according to the sheriff’s department