Big rig passenger dies in Interstate 40 crash

BARSTOW — The passenger in a semi truck died after the truck collided with another semi truck on Interstate 40 Saturday night.

Amrik Singh, 50, of Brampton, Ontario, Canada, was ejected from the sleeper compartment of the truck when it struck another truck at about 10:45 p.m. on a stretch of eastbound I-40 about half way between Ludlow and Needles, according to a California Highway Patrol report. Singh was pronounced dead at the scene.

Sukhjit Kaur, 38, of Brampton, who was driving the truck  in which Singh was a passenger, was transported to Colorado River Medical center by ambulance for treatment of minor injuries. The driver of the other truck was uninjured.

Based on statements from the drivers, Singh was sleeping in the truck’s sleeper compartment when Kaur attempted to pass the other semi, the CHP report stated. For an unknown reason, Kaur drifted into the right lane, striking the rear of the other truck’s trailer. Kaur’s truck continued across the lane and hit a bridge railing, ejecting Singh into a 20-foot desert ravine.

CHP Officer Wyland LaFave said it did not appear that drugs or alcohol were a factor in the crash, but based on drivers’ statements, Kaur was speeding when he attempted to pass the other truck. The speed limit for big rigs is 55 miles per hour, and Kaur was believed to be going about 70 miles per hour.

LaFave said that to his knowledge, Kaur was not cited.

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