Riverside head-on collision leaves three seriously injured

A recent head-on collision in the Riverside area sent three people to the hospital. Although the present condition of the three victims is not known, authorities who cleared the scene of the wreck said all three had suffered "serious" injuries.

The crash happened in the early hours of the morning along a major freeway in the area. According to police, one of the drivers had managed to get on to the wrong side of the freeway and was heading in the opposite direction of the flow of traffic. The car collided head-on with another vehicle that was traveling in the expected direction, crumpling both cars into piles of metal.

Police had to close the freeway to clear the scene, as all lanes were blocked. Reportedly, rescue officials had to remove two of the victims from the car that was traveling in the right direction, as both of them were stuck in the vehicle.

While it is not clear in this case why the driver of one of the cars was traveling the wrong way on the freeway, these sorts of incidents are not as uncommon as one might think. Especially at night, the highways and side roads of the greater Los Angeles area can be very confusing and hard to navigate, even for someone who has lived in the area for a while. Drowsiness or distraction can also contribute to a driver's getting confused and going against the flow of traffic.

Although a wrong way car accident is not uncommon, California drivers obviously do have the responsibility to follow the rules of the road, which includes going the right direction, and must take reasonable care to do so. When a driver fails in this obligation, he or she may wind up owing compensation to the victims of any accident that might result.