San Diego

Child Burned, 8 Adults Injured in Fiery Crash on I-5 in National City

Nine people, including a child, were injured in a three-vehicle crash on Interstate 5 in National City.

The collision sent all three cars up in flames in the middle of freeway lanes near Main Street at around 6:45 p.m.

I hear like a big crash and right after that hear another crash,” said witness Adrian Cardona. β€œI thought it was right here on the street, and I got up and then I heard someone screaming for help really loud.”

According to the National City Fire Department, seven of the nine people injured suffered major injuries. Five of the patients, including a child of unknown age, suffered burn injuries.

β€œWe started seeing flames and a couple explosions. It was pretty crazy,” Cardona told NBC 7. β€œThe house shook like it was crazy, even the neighbors came out thinking it was right here.”

The Adults were transported to UC San Diego Hospital and the child was taken to Rady Children's Hospital, NCFD said.

β€œAnd it sucks because you’re hearing right here, and then you’re hearing people screaming for help, and it’s, like, one fence away, you know. That stops all that. That was pretty scary too,” Cardona said.

NCFD Battalion Chief Mark Beveradge said that access to the victims was difficult because of rush hour traffic.

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