(From the AP) A pickup truck spun out of control on a rain-slicked freeway north of Los Angeles, causing a pileup that killed five people — four of them children — and injured six others, the California Highway Patrol said Monday. The three-car crash in the Newhall Pass closed the southbound lanes of Interstate 5 for about nine hours and came at the beginning of a storm that swept through Central and Southern California late in the season, dumping nearly an inch of rain over downtown.

The driver of the red Mazda pickup lost control, spun into the center divider and overturned at about 11:55 p.m. Sunday, said CHP Officer John Lutz.

A Nissan Altima carrying a family struck the pickup and was then hit by a Chevrolet Suburban, Lutz said.

The crash killed the pickup’s driver, identified as John Blackburn, 54, of Frasier Park, Lutz said.

Jessica Milan, a 27-year-old passenger in the Nissan, was hospitalized in critical condition. Her three children and nephew in the back seat died, and the driver, Francisco Enciso, 25, of Daly City, suffered major injuries, Lutz said.

Read more here: 4 kids among 5 killed in Newhall Pass freeway crash