An 18-year-old driver was killed in Indio Tuesday when he lost control of his car and slammed into a pick-up truck traveling in the other direction, authorities said.
The fatality occurred just before 8 a.m. Tuesday on Varner Road, just east of 38th Avenue, according to a California Highway Patrol statement.
The motorist from Cathedral City was heading eastbound when his Lexus sedan veered onto the right shoulder and lost control, according to the statement. Authorities said he overcorrected to the left, crossing over the dividing lines into the westbound lane, where he collided with the pick-up.
CHP was still investigating why the initial loss of control occurred.
The agency said the truck — initially reported as a construction vehicle and later identified as a white Ford hauling a utility trailer — was occupied by two men. They were traveling westbound on Varner at the time of the collision, and both the driver and passenger sustained injuries, CHP said.
Paramedics pronounced the victim dead at the scene. His identity was not disclosed.
CHP officers shut down Varner in both directions to conduct a preliminary investigation and clear the wreckage. Traffic barricades were removed on the east side of the collision area at 11:25 a.m., according to CHP records.
Anyone with information about the crash was asked to contact the Indio CHP office at 760-772-5300.