Drivers in California and other states must follow the rules of the road in order to avoid causing accidents. One common reason for vehicle collisions is a driver’s failure to stop at traffic lights and/or yield to oncoming traffic. Such seems to be the case in a recent multi-car accident in Santa Barbara that claimed the lives of three young adults and seriously injured five others.
Accident details
Just before 5 p.m. on May 28, three vehicles were involved in a horrendous collision at the intersection of Stadium Road and El Colegio Road. The intersection is located on the campus of the University of California Santa Barbara, and one of the individuals killed was a student there. Apparently, a driver ran a red light, leading to the crash.
Along with the 20-year-old UCSB student, two other people were also killed in the crash. One was another 20-year-old man, and the other was a 28-year-old man. Reports state that one of the vehicles left the roadway and struck a tree. Emergency crews had to extract some of the accident victims from their wrecked vehicles.
Right to compensation
Although the report does not specify which driver caused the crash, the fact that the driver allegedly ran a red light suggests evidence of recklessness. That individual may face personal injury and/or wrongful death claims from the injured victims as well as the surviving family of the deceased victims. If the alleged at-fault driver died in the crash as well, his or her estate can still be named in any civil suits. Affected parties will want to work closely with an experienced personal injury attorney in California for assistance.