Plumbing 
Pete Luna|Leader-News
Wreckage from a three-vehicle crash caused by a pickup truck driver fleeing the U.S. Border Patrol blocks the intersection of U.S. highways 83 and 90, Getty and Main streets, in downtown Uvalde. Two people died at the scene and 10 others were injured in the crash, which happened Thursday, Sept. 28, around 6 p.m.
The driver of a Toyota Tacoma pickup fleeing U.S. Border Patrol agents on Wednesday ran a red light and plowed into an 18-wheeler at the intersection of Main and Getty streets, killing herself and one of her nine passengers. The horrific crash in the heart of Uvalde’s downtown sent 10 people to area hospitals, with at least one in critical condition.
The 17-year-old driver, Leslie Anahi Gonzalez Ramos of Austin, transporting what were believed to be immigrants who had entered the country illegally, had driven through a ranch to avoid the Border Patrol checkpoint on U.S. Highway 90 West. A Border Patrol agent gave chase after spotting the vehicle when it crashed through a ranch gate to rejoin the highway.
The drivers of the 18-wheeler and a grey Dodge pickup, which was also struck in the intersection, were transported to Uvalde Memorial Hospital. The semi-truck driver returned to the scene after he was released.
The accident resulted in a 4.5-hour shutdown of the intersection and a portion of U.S. Highway 90 while first responders worked the scene, followed by Texas Department of Public Safety troopers doing a crash reconstruction.
“We’ve been on pins and needles that this was going to happen. We don’t pursue in town,” said Mayor Don McLaughlin Jr., referring to the Uvalde Police Department, which has a non-pursuit policy in the city limits.
UPD implemented the policy in August of 2021 after a city council discussion on the danger of in-town pursuits. That discussion followed a downtown crash between a UPD cruiser and an unmarked U.S. Border Patrol unit during a chase. Previously, UPD policy, adopted on Dec. 18, 2013, called for officers in marked vehicles to use their judgment regarding pursuits.
McLaughlin said UPD’s typical role is to block off intersections in town for public safety during chases initiated by other agencies. The rapid pace of the Wednesday incident – the Toyota was clocked at speeds of 100 mph – made that unworkable in this instance, according to the mayor.
McLaughlin suggested area residents use extreme caution when driving, especially at busy intersections.
“First of all, the police department will try to block intersections. So if we know they’re coming in, we will block the intersections to give them a clear path to town. First and foremost,” McLaughlin said.
“Secondly, if you’re going to these intersections along Highway 90, you need to look both ways before you go, even if your light is green. Because these people have no regard for human life. They have none. They don’t.”
Uvalde firefighters, Uvalde Police Department officers, Texas Department of Public Safety troopers, and U.S. Border Patrol agents respond to the three-vehicle wreck that occurred Sept. 28 at the intersection of U.S. highways 83 and 90. Approximately 10 people were taken to Uvalde Memorial Hospital and then to hospitals in San Antonio.
Chase, wreck
Uvalde Police Department officers attempted to deploy a tire deflation device to stop the Toyota on Highway 90 in the area of the Uvalde County Fairplex, but were unsuccessful, according to UPD public information officer Jessica Zamora. Police did not pursue the truck into Uvalde.
She said UPD was called to the scene of the wreck in town at about 6:03 p.m. as an assisting agency. Zamora reported there were passengers inside the Tacoma’s cab and bed.
The Toyota’s driver and one front passenger were pronounced dead at the scene, and an additional front passenger was in critical condition.
Uvalde Volunteer Fire Department chief Mario Rangel said about 20 firefighters responded, where they then used battery-powered rescue cutting tools to remove both driver side doors on the Toyota to extricate occupants.
Firefighters helped load patients from the Toyota on gurneys. EMS transported those patients to Uvalde Memorial Hospital. They were then sent on to San Antonio hospitals.
UVFD members remained on scene until about 10 p.m. to monitor the heavily damaged vehicles.
Zamora said the highway reopened at about 11:35 p.m.
Pete Luna|Leader-News
Uvalde Volunteer Fire Department members (left to right) Billy Foutz, Ralph Marines, Juan Zamora, Baxter Brewer and others check on passengers in a Toyota Tacoma. The firemen cut open both driver-side doors on the double cab pickup to extricate passengers. The driver and a front-cab passenger were pronounced dead at the scene.
Uvalde Volunteer Fire Department member Patrick Williams (left) and city of Uvalde fire marshal tend a passenger injured in the three-vehicle crash.
Uvalde Police Department Officer Leeann Cantu and a U.S. Border Patrol agent support a man injured in the Sept. 28 three-vehicle crash at the intersection of U.S. highways 83 and 90.
