3 Dead, Including Baby, & One Child Hurt in Wreck on I-10

A California family driving home from Florida last night rear ended an 18 wheeler, costing three of the four passengers their lives.

The accident happened around 8:45 p.m. Wednesday night on Interstate 10 near mile marker 55. Ricky Hodson Jr. of Tulare, California was traveling westbound on I-10 with his girlfriend, Amber Thompson, on their way back from Florida, when they struck an 18 wheeler, killing them both, along with their one year old daughter, Paisley.

Corporal Benjamin Seibert of the Mississippi Highway Patrol says, "Both vehicles were in the right hand lane and the 2013 Chevrolet Cruze rear ended the 18 wheeler. Everything else, all the particulars of it, are under investigation."

Ricky Hodson III, 6, the driver’s son from a previous relationship, was the only survivor. Seibert says it’s a miracle the little boy was unharmed when his family’s car slid underneath the tractor trailer’s tail end. Seibert also says, "The top of the 18 wheeler was right here. It has that bar that comes underneath of it and when it hit, it folded up that bar, the car went underneath the 18 wheeler, and the front of the vehicle collided with the back left tire."

According to Facebook, Hodson Jr. had just received full custody of his son. Now, the boy is in the custody of authorities and is waiting for his grandparents from California to arrive in south Mississippi. Seibert also says, "He’s very fortunate to have survived the accident, but of course it’s going to be really hard for him now."

Seibert says he wants drivers to be mindful that traffic can come to a complete stop at any time on Interstate 10. Seibert closes, "While people are driving and they’re wrapped up in their own lives, it’s the last thing on their mind, that 1-10 coming to a stop, but we have construction and other accidents all the time."

A fundraising page in Tulare, California has already raised $2,000 to help cover funeral costs.