LAKE LOS ANGELES – A 50-year-old driver died Monday morning when his pickup truck crossed into the opposing traffic lane and collided with a big rig in the Lake Los Angeles area, authorities said.
The fatal collision happened around 10:35 a.m. Monday, May 10, on 170th Street East north of Lake Los Angeles Avenue, according to a California Highway Patrol report.
The driver was in a 1996 GMC Sierra pickup traveling northbound on 170th Street East “at an unknown high rate of speed” when he “allowed his vehicle to turn to the left and into the southbound lane of travel,” the CHP report states.
The pickup collided head-on with a 2008 Freightliner Cascadia that was traveling southbound on 170th Street East at approximately 25 miles per hour, according to the CHP report.
The pickup truck’s driver was pronounced dead at the scene. His name has not yet been released pending next of kin notification, but he was a 50-year-old resident of Santa Clara, according to the CHP report. The big rig’s driver, 30-year-old Thomas F. Thomas of Lancaster, was not injured in the collision, according to the CHP report.
“The involvement of alcohol and/or drugs is unknown at this time and is still under investigation,” the CHP report states.
As a result of the collision, hazardous material (motor oil) spilled onto the roadway and the adjacent dirt shoulder. The Los Angeles County Department of Public Works responded to the scene to safely dispose of the hazardous material. A SIGALERT was issued for approximately five hours.
UPDATE: The deceased driver has been identified as 50-year-old Fidel Torres Salvador, according to the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office.
Collision says
Distracted.