Ventura Freeway Crash Kills Driver
A 26-year-old Orange County man was killed in Encino on Sunday when his truck swerved across the center divider on the Ventura Freeway into oncoming traffic, the California Highway Patrol said.
The motorist, whose name was withheld pending notification of relatives, was driving east on the Ventura Freeway just past the Haskell Avenue exit when his truck sideswiped a car, veered across the median into westbound lanes and then collided with an oncoming car, CHP Officer Gerardo Cruz said. The man, who was not wearing a seat belt, was killed after he was thrown from the truck.
His seat-belted passenger sustained minor injuries in the 5:30 p.m. accident, Cruz said. The driver of the westbound car also suffered minor injuries. Both were treated at the scene and released.
The passenger admitted to drinking but would not say if his friend had also been drinking, Cruz said.
The accident shut down two lanes of the westbound freeway for about an hour, Cruz said.
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