Authorities ID El Cajon mother killed in I-8 rollover crash that infant survived

Authorities on Wednesday identified the 27-year-old El Cajon woman who died last week in a rollover freeway crash that her infant child survived with only minor injuries.

Daraiah Puanani Black was headed east on Interstate 8 around 7:10 p.m. on Friday when she lost control of her Toyota Corolla near state Route 125 and struck the concrete center divider, according to the California Highway Patrol and county Medical Examiner’s Office.

The car rolled, coming to rest on its wheels in the left lane of the freeway, authorities said. Several other drivers stopped to try to help the mother and her baby.

Firefighters performed CPR on Black, but she died at the scene from multiple blunt force injuries at 7:31 p.m., according to the county Medical Examiner’s Office.

Paramedics took Black’s daughter, who was strapped into a car seat, to Rady Children’s Hospital with minor injuries.

In an email, Black’s boyfriend called their daughter “our 3-month-old miracle that made it.” He said he and Black had been together for four years. A GoFundMe page to raise money for Black’s funeral had amassed more than $13,000 in donations as of Wednesday.

The Highway Patrol is continuing to probe what caused the crash, but investigators do not believe drug or alcohol impairment was a factor.