A wrong-way driver struck eight cars on the northbound Antelope Valley (14) Freeway, injuring several people, three critically.
It was rush hour, 4:35 p.m., when a driver went speeding south on the northbound 14 Freeway, near Escondido Canyon Road. He hit eight cars and narrowly missed a pair of California Highway Patrol officers who were standing on the shoulder investigating a previous crash.
Maryanne Looram, who was in one of the cars struck by the wrong-way driver, said she believes it's a miracle she survived.
"Here comes this big white boxcar going really fast and it hit me head on," she said. "I tried to get away, but there was no place to get away to. ... I just thank God that I'm alive."
Looram said an officer pulled her from her mangled Honda. She suffered a broken ankle and multiple bruises but will recover.
Another victim was also taken to Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital. The suspect was airlifted to Antelope Valley Hospital.
The chain reaction collisions tied up traffic for hours, but drivers were unusually patient.
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Barbara Scott, a driver stuck in traffic, said she didn't mind waiting one bit.
"I just thank god I wasn't there 5 minutes earlier," she said. "I'm just very thankful. I wouldn't care if I had to wait until tomorrow to move."
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