Stormy Weather Gives Motorists the Blues

Rainy conditions contributed to a slew of minor accidents that stalled traffic on the Golden State and Simi Valley freeways Monday afternoon, the California Highway Patrol said.

The CHP closed the northbound Golden State Freeway intermittently after the most serious accident, in which a truck overturned on the road’s shoulder, Officer Mark Fessia said. The freeway’s northbound exit to Van Nuys Boulevard was closed about 2 1/2 hours, Fessia said.

The accident occurred shortly after 2 p.m., when the truck struck a car in the rear as both vehicles slowed in a traffic jam caused by a minor accident on the road ahead, Fessia said.

The drivers of the two vehicles were treated for minor injuries at Holy Cross Hospital in Mission Hills and released, a hospital spokeswoman said.

The overturned truck was within sight of eastbound motorists on the nearby Simi Valley Freeway, and drivers distracted by the accident caused three minor accidents that temporarily slowed traffic on that freeway, CHP Sgt. Richard Barton said.

Numerous accidents tied up the Golden State Freeway into the evening, as drivers distracted by other accidents slammed into one another, Fessia said. “It wouldn’t surprise me if there were 20 or 30” accidents, he said.

One of the mishaps came when part of a tow truck being used to right the overturned truck struck an overhanging sign, causing transportation authorities to close several northbound lanes in the evening to repair the sign, Fessia said.