Van Carrying 19 People Overturns, 1 Killed
Several Others Injured

DULZURA, Calif. -- A van carrying 19 people rolled over on a rural East County road today, killing one person and injuring 17 others, authorities said.

The blue van overturned on Honey Springs Road, about a quarter-mile north of state Route 94, according to the California Highway Patrol.

U.S. Border Patrol agents notified the CHP when they were driving in the area shortly after 4:30 a.m. and saw the overturned vehicle, CHP Officer Brian Pennings said.

A woman who was not immediately identified died in the rollover, Pennings said. Another person with severe head injuries did not have a pulse when medics reached the scene, but was later revived, he added.


At least two other people were in critical condition, Pennings said.

In addition to the one fatality, a total of 17 other people were injured and taken to local hospitals, U.S. Border Patrol spokesman Rick Kite said. Two of the victims were found outside and the remainder were in the van, he added.

Further information on the victims was not immediately available.

The van's driver, 20-year-old Marcos Olguin of Vista, was being questioned by investigators, Pennings said.

Pennings said the van had loaded up at a location on Honey Springs Road just five miles north of the accident site, and the driver apparently lost control and crashed while driving southbound.

A tire rim gouged out a large portion of the roadway, the CHP reported.

Authorities closed the northbound lanes of Honey Springs Road from state Route 94, according to the CHP.

Agents from the Border Patrol and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement were investigating the crash with the CHP, Kite said.

Of course as usual for San Diego news media, nowhere in the article is mentioned the terms illegal aliens or smugglers, just that Border Patrol and Immigration were investigating. This is a near every other day occurence, but our local media treats them as simple car accident stories. And when a smuggler van crashes head on into innocent Americans, going the wrong direction in the fast lane of the freeway at night with their lights off, they just report it as a wrong way driver story. That's Mexico's Finest City for you.