Duty of Care

On Friday, September 25, 2026, three construction workers were killed when a tractor-trailer struck vehicles in an Interstate 10 work zone on eastbound I-10 near Intake Boulevard in Blythe, California, according to the California Highway Patrol.

CHP said the crash was reported about 5:17 a.m. A preliminary investigation found the tractor-trailer was traveling east at an undetermined speed when it struck a parked attenuator construction vehicle and an unoccupied Chevrolet Silverado before colliding with a water truck. During that sequence, three construction workers were also struck and sustained fatal injuries.

The Riverside County Coroner’s Office identified the workers as Christopher Benavidez Guatemala, 27, of Coachella, California; Alfonso Vega Torres, 50, also of Coachella; and Francisco Morales Mendoza, 39, of Tonopah, Arizona. The 44-year-old tractor-trailer driver, a Redlands man, suffered severe head and leg injuries and was taken to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs. CHP said alcohol and drugs were not believed to be factors, and the cause remains under investigation.

The crash occurred along a Caltrans I-10 pavement rehabilitation project near Blythe. For highway crews, work-zone protection only works when attenuator trucks, buffer space, and clear escape paths are set before anyone stands near live traffic — and when stop-work is used if those controls are not in place.

• Engineering News-Record
• NBC Palm Springs
• KESQ / City News Service