The Pattersson family arrived in Los Angeles, USA from Uppsala, Sweden on Sunday June 9, 1995. The next day they headed for Disneyland, the first day of a two-week vacation in America. Driving on Golden State Freeway, having just passed the Hollywood Freeway, suddenly they found that the fast moving traffic was rapidly coming to a stop. The drivers applied their brakes, followed by screeching tires, loud thumps, beeps, explosive noises, smoke and then a dead silence. The car behind the Pattersson’s just could not stop and rear ended them, pushing their car to the right lane and spinning it ninety degrees. A truck in that lane could not stop either, so it hit head on the left passenger door. It happened so fast that they were first in shock for a moment, followed by moaning and screaming.

Karin who was sitting by the window was badly bleeding and unconscious. Karl, the driver, was badly bruised in the left arm. The rest of the family was conscious but bleeding and suffering from whiplash. After the ambulance came, they were rushed to nearby Loma Linda University and Medical Center.