A 1-year-old baby in Colorado has been left without his parents and grandmother after a deadly crash on Thursday morning.
On Aug. 15, a semi-truck carrying large pipes rolled over and crashed in the eastbound lanes of I-70 at Ward Road, leaving three people dead, the Wheat Ridge, Colo. police announced in a statement.
According to police, the crash caused the truck to lose its load, spilling across the westbound lanes and impacting a car traveling westbound.
“The car was struck and crashed, resulting in three fatalities. Two other people in that car were transported to a local hospital. The truck driver was also taken to a local hospital,” said the department.
Family members have identified the deceased individuals as newlyweds Ruben Rodriguez and Juliana Rodriguez Plata, who had just gotten married on Saturday, Aug. 10, and the bride’s mother, Luz Melba Martinez, reported CBS News Colorado, KUSA and KMGH-TV.
The bride’s parents were in town visiting from Colombia.
Juliana Rodriguez Plata and Ruben Rodriguez.
GoFundMe
“I saw when the pipes were going so I just closed my eyes and no reaction, I just felt the impact and I woke up out of nowhere and just saw the baby crying and everyone unconscious, not waking up,” Carlos Plata, the bride’s father, who was also in the vehicle along with the couple’s 1-year-old son Daniel, recalled to KDVR.
“It was terrible, the accident, the image, all the blood. They were just instantly dead. Seeing my whole family, my daughter, and my wife, dead,” he added.
A GoFundMe has been created to assist with funeral costs and care for Daniel.
While the crash remains under investigation, the Wheat Ridge Police Department estimates that at least seven vehicles, including the semi-truck, were involved in this series of crashes.
“The debris field from the semi-truck’s tipped load spanned more than two football fields across both lanes of I-70. There were nearly 100 large blue plastic tubes that weighed roughly 500 lbs. each,” said the Wheat Ridge Police.
KUSA reports that the area where the incident occurred is part of the Colorado Department of Transportation’s I-70/Ward Road Interchange reconstruction project.
“I couldn’t imagine driving a big truck through there… Every morning, if there’s a truck near me, that’s all I can think about — let’s hope we make it through without it tipping over,” driver Harry Payne told the outlet.
“There should be an illuminated sign that tells people they need to slow down, that there are sharp curves ahead… The typical signage, I don’t think is appropriate or adequate for this particular project,” said Don Carver.
On its website, the Colorado Department of Transportation states that the project is designed to replace two aging bridges on I-70 over Ward Road “to support increased traffic on the I-70 corridor.”
“It is also the third of several planned bridge replacement projects along I-70 and signifies CDOT’s commitment to upgrading vital infrastructure to maintain public safety,” the website adds.
