Fabian Zamora, Carolina Navarrete De Leal, Obituary, Death: Two people killed in Tuesday’s I-10 crash identified

Fabian Zamora, Carolina Navarrete De Leal, Obituary, Death – A tragic multi-vehicle collision on Interstate 10 near Washington Street on Tuesday afternoon resulted in the deaths of two individuals and caused significant traffic delays along the highway. The crash, which occurred just after 1 p.m., involved a white Toyota, two semi-trucks, and a repair vehicle, causing hours of disruption for westbound drivers.

According to California Highway Patrol (CHP) Officer Rafael Espinosa, the incident took place near mile marker 49. Initial reports indicate that the driver of a white Toyota, traveling in the second lane of I-10 westbound, unexpectedly veered to the right for unknown reasons. This sudden maneuver led to a collision with a blue semi-truck and its attached trailer, which was traveling in the adjacent lane.

The force of the impact pushed the white Toyota into a red semi-truck and trailer that had been disabled and parked on the right shoulder of the highway. Directly in front of the disabled truck was a white tire repair truck that had been assisting with the breakdown. In the aftermath of the initial collision, the blue semi-truck was pushed forward and struck the repair truck and its driver, who was in the process of servicing the disabled vehicle.

Sadly, both the driver of the white Toyota and the maintenance worker in the repair truck were pronounced dead at the scene. The victims were later identified as Fabian Zamora, a 31-year-old man from Indio, and Carolina Navarrete De Leal, a 49-year-old woman from Coachella.

The crash led to significant disruptions in traffic, with two westbound lanes of I-10 blocked off while emergency responders worked at the scene. Traffic was diverted to Varner Road, causing lengthy delays for drivers. According to a post from Caltrans on X, the lanes remained closed for several hours, with all lanes being reopened to traffic by 6:30 p.m.

As the investigation into the cause of the crash continues, CHP officials have not yet released further details about why the driver of the white Toyota veered off course. Officers are working to gather additional evidence and witness statements to better understand the events leading up to the collision.

The crash serves as a tragic reminder of the dangers on the roads, especially in areas where vehicles are stopped on the shoulder for repairs. The deaths of Zamora and Navarrete De Leal have left the local communities of Indio and Coachella in mourning.