A man was killed and two women were critically injured Monday, Oct. 5, in a wrong-way crash that followed a police pursuit in Indio, officials said.
Riverside County sheriff's deputies spotted a "wanted vehicle" around 7:33 p.m. near Park Street and Miles Avenue and tried to pull it over, spokesperson Sgt. Robert Martinez said. He did not elaborate on why the vehicle was wanted.
The man driving the Mazda "failed to yield," and deputies with the department's Thermal station began a pursuit, Martinez said. They lost sight of the vehicle on Monroe Street and later found it had crashed with another vehicle near Interstate 10 and Monroe Street.
The California Highway Patrol responded to the crash around 9:37 p.m. The silver Mazda MPV deputies were pursuing
had driven the wrong way onto the eastbound I-10 off-ramp at Monroe Street and collided head-on with a white Hyundai Sonata that was exiting the freeway, a CHP spokesperson, Officer David Torres, said in a press release.
The Mazda's driver, a 42-year-old Cherry Valley man, was trapped inside when the vehicle caught fire. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Hyundai's driver, a 62-year-old Indio woman, and her passenger, a 58-year-old Indio woman, were taken to Desert Regional Medical Center with major injuries, Torres said.
The identities of the three people were not immediately released.
Jennifer Cortez covers education and breaking news in the Coachella Valley. Reach her at jennifer.cortez@desertsun.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Man dies in fiery crash after police chase in Indio
