A fatal crash northbound on Interstate 5 killed four people and seriously injured seven others at Elk Grove on Sunday evening. A car and an SUV were totaled in the wreck. Authorities shut down the site of the accident until nighttime to allow paramedics and officials to rescue and investigate. Traffic suffered as a result and was backed up for miles costing some drivers hours of wait time.

Tracey Hansen, chief of the Cosumnes Fire Department at Elk Grove, was able to confirm to the Sacramento Bee that there were four fatalities and a total of seven injuries at the scene.

At about 3:14 p.m. emergency officials were dispatched to the crash site, which was about half a mile north from Hood Franklin.

An initial investigation unveiled that a 2004 Expedition was heading southbound on the I-5, when for an unknown reason, the driver lost control of the vehicle and it veered across the center divider where it then violently crashed head-on with a northbound Honda Accord.

The crash caused both vehicles to roll over and eject their occupants onto the road.

Equipped with three rows of seating, the Expedition was at full capacity with nine occupants. After the accident, the driver and two passengers were killed. Paramedics rushed the six other occupants to a hospital.

Inside the Accord were two occupants, a male driver – who was killed – and a female passenger that was seriously injured and sent to the hospital. She is believed to be anywhere from 50- to 60-years-old.

Emergency officials transported the injured victims to UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, Kaiser South, Sutter General and Methodist Hospital. According to the report all of the victims were in critical but stable condition.

A Toyota RAV4 that was towing a boat was also involved in the crash. Emergency personnel did not report any injuries to the occupants of that vehicle, however.

The names of the victims are pending release until the kin are notified.

Officials shut down all northbound lanes of the I-5 leading to the crash site for cleanup and investigation. Detectives collected evidence and witness statements to examine back at their facilities.

Traffic was detoured east to Franklin Boulevard or Highway 99 and motorists that wanted to enter I-5 northbound were encouraged to do so via Elk Grove Boulevard.

At AA Accident Attorneys we understand that some car wrecks are unavoidable and that such an event can be life changing.  Contact a Sacramento Car Accident Lawyer if you have been involved in a crash. You may be entitled to more compensation than the insurance company is willing to give you.