A septuagenarian and another man were killed and three other people were injured in a four-vehicle wreck on Interstate 15 in Temescal Valley, authorities said Thursday.
Gene Kittiko, 79, of Ontario and Nicolas Lanni, 34, of Norco were fatally injured shortly after 10 p.m. Wednesday on northbound I-15, just south of Indian Truck Trail, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The agency said Kittiko and Lanni were in sedans that collided with another car and an SUV during heavy rain along the corridor. One of the cars reportedly hydroplaned in the fast lane, possibly triggering the crash, the CHP said.
Riverside County Fire Department paramedics reached the location roughly 20 minutes later and discovered Lanni dead in his vehicle, while Kittiko was gravely injured and unconscious.
He was taken to Inland Valley Medical Center in Wildomar, where he succumbed to his injuries just after midnight Thursday.
The other three victims were taken to the same hospital for treatment — all with moderate injuries, according to the fire department.
The northbound side of the freeway was completely shut down for more than an hour, after which officers began gradually reopening lanes. The entire northbound side of the artery was open by 1 a.m. Thursday.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation.