Three young siblings between ages 5 and 12 and a pregnant woman are among victims of five-car horror crash 'caused by SUV driver on a cell phone'

  • Victims were identified as Irving Miranda, 12; Stephanie Miranda, 5; Jose Miranda, 7, and their father, 30-year-old Luis Miranda
  • Vivian Rodriguez, 31, and her unborn baby also killed in crash, bringing death toll to six
  • Eyewitnesses said a driver using his cellphone caused the crash after speeding through an intersection at 90mph
  • Children were ejected from cars in the violent smash

By Daily Mail Reporter

PUBLISHED: 10:14 EST, 23 October 2013 | UPDATED: 03:34 EST, 24 October 2013

The victims of a horrific crash in Lodi, California, Tuesday evening have been identified as a father and his three children between the ages of 5 and 12, as well as a pregnant woman.

The multicar smash-up that happened just after 5.20pm at a busy intersection took the lives of Irving Miranda, 12; his 7-year-old brother Jose; their 5-year-old sister Stephanie, and the siblings' father, 30-year-old Luis Miranda.

Also killed in the crash was 31-year-old Vivian Rodriguez and her unborn baby.

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Crash scene: Police inspect a bent pickup truck at the scene of a five-car accident in Lodi, California on Tuesday night. Five people died in the crash, including a child, a pregnant woman and her unborn child

Crash scene: Police inspect a bent pickup truck at the scene of a five-car accident in Lodi, California on Tuesday night. Five people died in the crash, including a child, a pregnant woman and her unborn child

Lodi Unified Assistant Superintendent of Elementary Education Catherine Pennington told Lodi News said that Irving Miranda attended Lodi Middle School, where he distinguished himself as a good student and an all-around well-liked boy.

Stephanie was enrolled in a kindergarten program in Heritage Primary Elementary School, where her brother Jose was a first-grader.

The siblings and their father are survived by 9-year-old Eden Miranda.

Police say an SUV driver reportedly drove through the intersection of Ham and Vine streets while on his cell phone and caused a five-car collision, leaving up to a dozen people injured.  

A makeshift memorial had sprung up on the site of the crash, with sobbing relatives, friends and strangers leaving flowers, notes and stuffed animals in honor of the victims, News 10 reported.

Neighbors reported running from their homes after hearing the collision and seeing bodies - including those of children - in the road as emergency personnel arrived.

Outpouring of grief: People have been flocking to a makeshift memorial in Lodi to leave flowers and notes

Outpouring of grief: People have been flocking to a makeshift memorial in Lodi to leave flowers and notes

Touching mementos: Mourners have been bringing stuffed animals in honor of the three children and an unborn baby who perished in the crash

Touching mementos: Mourners have been bringing stuffed animals in honor of the three children and an unborn baby who perished in the crash

Carla Sanchez, 12, Irving Miranda's schoolmate, at right, is overcome with emotion near a makeshift memorial

Carla Sanchez, 12, Irving Miranda's schoolmate, at right, is overcome with emotion near a makeshift memorial

Five vehicles were involved in the crash, which eye-witnesses said was caused when a driver in an SUV raced through the intersection at speeds as high as 90mph while on his phone.

But authorities said they are still investigating whether cellphone use, alcohol or drugs were involved.

Several people were transported by air or ambulance to area hospitals, including St. Joseph’s Hospital in Stockton and UC Davis Medical Center.

Horrific aftermath: Police and fire officials work at the scene of the multicar crash in Lodi that killed six and injured 12

Horrific aftermath: Police and fire officials work at the scene of the multicar crash in Lodi that killed six and injured 12

Deadly impact: Witnesses described seeing children lying on the ground after being ejected from their vehicle on impact

Deadly impact: Witnesses described seeing children lying on the ground after being ejected from their vehicle on impact

Lodi Police Detective Eric Bradley told the Sentinel that three of the injured were in surgery late on Tuesday night but that their conditions were unknown.

 

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Bradley added that the ages of those injured and the extent of their wounds was not yet known.

David Durand with the American Medical Response confirmed to the paper that there were children involved in the crash and that they had been ejected from a vehicle during impact.

Three vehicles were crushed together in the crash, and a pickup truck was bent so that it formed a 'V' around the hood of another truck, the Lodi News Sentinel reported.

Devastating: Authorities are investigating whether cell phone use, alcohol or drugs were involved

Devastating: Authorities are investigating whether cell phone use, alcohol or drugs were involved

Shattered glass and metal shards ripped from the vehicles had been strewn across the road and emergency responders put powder on the street to absorb oil, gasoline and blood.

Josh Ramos told News10 that he lives just doors from the crash site and said that when he walked to the street, he saw bodies everywhere and people in shock.

'People running around children outside crying people caring for them,' Ramos said.

Another eyewitness said she saw a little red shoe on the ground - which 'just broke my heart'.

A major accident investigation team is now analyzing the scene to determine where and how the crash occurred.

Lodi, a city of more than 60,000 people, is about 35 miles south of Sacramento.

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Cars should be fitted with materials that disrupt phone signals unless hard wired to be hands free. Easy to do.

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The parents of unbuckled children should be charged with child endangerment.

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No seat belts + 90 mph thru intersection = 5 deaths. Cell phone use illegal but incidental.

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We had all better get used to it... ever seen the carnage in Mexico?

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It probably has more to do with going 90mph through an intersection than a cell phone.

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At age 70 - don't even HAVE a cell-phone- and was certain...... NOT ME !!!!!!!....... just then it happened.. only some 6 weeks ago I completely totaled two new autos because a young female attempted a left-turn at a major thoroughfare while texting.... when she should NOT have done so. I suddenly realized somebody surely was looking out for the both us. Result: Both cars completely wrecked yet I'm still around to tell the tail... in a brand new truck.. The moral of the story: YOU never know when someone else will do you in ! MAHALO..

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Vehicular homicide. Throw the book at them. Or force feed them their mobile phone.

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seat belts and size appropriate child seats obviously were not being used. it could have help some of them survive.

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A paramedic once said he never pulled a dead body out from a seat belt. Injured maybe, but dead, no.

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Almost an entire family killed, along with a pregnant woman and her unborn child. So, was getting someplace on time, and a possible phone call worth the destruction of lives and families?

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