Six people were killed in separate crashes overnight that happened within hours of each other and less than a mile apart on a stretch of Pearblossom Highway in the Antelope Valley.
Monday’s deadly crash was reported just before 5:30 a.m. on State Route 138 at Hampel Avenue in Pearblossom just half a mile from where five people were killed in a crash near 106th Street East Sunday night.
A California Highway Patrol spokesperson confirmed that one person died at the scene of Monday’s collision involving a big rig and a Honda minivan.
Investigators believe the big rig had pulled over the side of the road when the minivan drifted out of its lane and struck the semi.
The victim has not been identified and it was unclear why the minivan veered.
Less than 10 hours earlier, two drivers and three passengers were killed in a crash Sunday night that occurred shortly after 8 p.m.
First responders found a Toyota in the brush that had flipped onto its roof and a Mitsubishi on its side on the shoulder of the roadway.
Both drivers and three passengers inside one of the vehicles were killed in the crash, a CHP spokesperson said.
The ages and genders of the victims were not immediately known.
The deadly collision prompted an hours-long Sigalert for lane closures that was finally lifted around 4 a.m. Monday.
The causes of both crashes remain under investigation.
An area resident told KTLA the community has been concerned with this stretch of SR-138 for a while now and just had a listening session with Caltrans and other agencies to discuss concerns Friday evening.
KTLA’s Nancy Fontan contributed to this report.