Darleene Barrientos
Three unrelated crashes along a stretch of the Foothill (210) Freeway
were attributed to unsafe driving in the rain, authorities said
Tuesday.
The latest of the accidents occurred about 12:25 p.m. Tuesday on
the eastbound side of the rain-slicked freeway, just west of Ocean
View Boulevard. A 39-year-old Canyon Country man lost control of his
Chevrolet S-10 pickup truck and hit the right side of a big rig,
California Highway Patrol Officer Vince Bell said. The truck went
under the wheels of the big rig's trailer and was thrown out across
the lanes into the center divider. The man was fortunate enough to
escape with a scratch on his hand, Bell said.
About 25 minutes earlier, a 28-year-old Los Angeles man driving
west on the freeway just east of Pennsylvania Avenue, lost control of
his 1998 Ford Explorer, causing it to roll over, Bell said. The man
and his son, who was a passenger in the vehicle, were taken to
Verdugo Hills Hospital with minor injuries.
On Monday, about 5:45 p.m., a Lake View Terrace man driving a 2001
Dodge pickup truck spun out in the rain just before the transition
road to the Glendale (2) Freeway from the east Foothill Freeway. The
truck lost control and drove off the freeway. A few minutes later, a
20-year-old Glendale man driving a 2002 Jeep Liberty spun out and hit
the pickup truck, Bell said.
"The first man was very fortunate," Bell said. "He stayed in his
car."
