San Francisco Chronicle, "Semi crashes on I-80, killing 3"

           Three people were killed and 10 others injured Monday when the driver of a tractor trailer lost control on Interstate 80 in Fairfield and plowed into seven vehicles, authorities said. The accident happened at 8:47 a.m. and closed the four westbound lanes of I-80 just east of Highway 12 for nearly 90 minutes as emergency workers tended to the injured and cleared the roadway.
           The chain reaction leading to the collision began when the truck driver apparently lost control in the slow lane and struck seven vehicles in front of him as they slowed because of congested traffic. It is unclear how fast he was going. The driver of the 1996 Ford Thunderbird directly in front of the big rig saw it bearing down and veered onto the shoulder to avoid it. The truck clipped the Thunderbird before hitting a Honda minivan carrying the three people killed in the wreck. An infant and two grandparents in the van were also critically injured and flown to UC Davis Medical Center.
           CHP officers remained on the scene into the afternoon, impounding vehicles, examining skid marks and trying to reconstruct what happened. Officers will be looking at how much sleep all the drivers involved had and whether anyone was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. They also will examine the mechanical condition of the vehicles involved.