Police in Brownsville Texas are trying to determine what caused a Honda Civic to crash into the back of an 18-wheeler truck on U.S. Highway 281.  The accident killed a toddler and critically injured his mother.

The car accident occurred just after 8:30 a.m. on Highway 281. The 18 wheeler truck was stopped, waiting to turn left into the construction site for a Brownsville Texas high school.

Ana Linda Lopez’s 2008 Honda Civic struck the 18-wheel truck from behind while traveling toward Brownsville on highway 281.

Lopez and her 3-year-old son, whose name was not released, were listed in critical condition at two local hospitals throughout the day.  However, the baby died later in the day, a hospital spokeswoman confirmed.

Roberto Garcia, the driver of the 18-wheeler, was uninjured but taken to the hospital as a precaution.

“Apparently, (the tractor-trailer) was going to make a turn into here; it still has its blinker on,” Brownsville police Sgt. David Dale said at the scene, motioning to the area where the truck planned to turn.

“Lopez either tried to go around or somehow got distracted” and “plowed into the rear of it.”

The boy was taken by ambulance to Valley Baptist Medical Center-Brownsville, while Lopez was transported to Valley Regional Medical Center. Garcia was also taken the VBMC-Brownsville.

Residents have expressed concerns that more accidents could occur once the new high school opens in 2010.

“Before it’s built, I’m sure the people who are going to be in control of this are going to put crosswalks, lights or a walkway” over the road, Dale said.

Although few accidents occur on U.S. 281, “when they do happen, it’s not a fender bender,” Dale said.

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