Tuesday, October 07, 2008

Third Cambodian-American victim dies of injuries from freeway head-on collision

Third victim dies of injuries from head-on I-5 collision

Tuesday, October 7, 2008
By Melissa Nix - mnix@sacbee.com
Sacramento Bee (California, USA)

A head-on collision involving a wrong-way driver on Interstate 5 that took two lives more than a week ago has taken another, officials reported.

Chao Yang, 20, of Stockton died Sunday evening in UC Davis Medical Center, according to the Sacramento County Coroner's Office.

Yang, who had been on life support, was pronounced dead about 6:25 p.m. from complications of multiple blunt force injuries, the Coroner's Office said.

Her husband, Chandra Van, 21, remained hospitalized in good condition, according to medical center officials.

Yang is also survived by the couple's 2-month-old son, Aidan.

The Yangs' niece, Tyana Kylie Yoeun-Chanhkhiao, 5 months, was released from the medical center last week.

Chandra Yang's mother-in-law, Sokpov Van, who sustained a broken leg and broken rib in the crash, was released from Mercy San Juan Medical Center on Saturday, his brother-in-law Samoeun Van said Monday.

Donald Vanness, 57, of Woodbridge and Yoeun Sum, 56, of Stockton were declared dead at the scene of the crash, which happened about 2:50 a.m. Sept. 28.

Vanness was driving his BMW north in the southbound lanes of I-5 near Hood Franklin Road when he slammed head-on into Sum's Toyota Camry, investigators said.

California Highway Patrol investigators suspect Vanness was driving while intoxicated, spokesman Michael Bradley said Monday.

He said they are awaiting toxicology reports from the coroner to confirm it.

Chao Yang, her husband, mother-in-law and niece were passengers in the Camry.

The family was returning home from a wedding in Willits.

Chao Yang's father-in-law and family patriach, Yoeun Sum, had escaped Cambodia nearly 30 years ago, fleeing with his wife and two young sons to avoid the genocide that claimed 1.7 million lives in that country.

But Sun couldn't avoid the BMW coming toward him.

His daughter and grandson, traveling in a car ahead, narrowly escaped a head-on collision.

"I saw a car come out of nowhere, and my husband barely dodged it," Monyan Van, 22, said last week. "It then hit the other car" carrying her parents.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Donald Vanness may have a suicidal state of mind when he drove the opposite direction. He may have evil mind to take some lives with him as he drove the wrong way to hit on coming vehicles. He succeeded and had gone straight to hell. A major lawsuit must be filed against the Donald Vanness and his insurance company.

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