SEPTEMBER 24, 2009 – A 36-year-old Florida man visiting San Diego on business died in a head-on collision Tuesday near Ramona, authorities have reported. The crash, which involved a 2004 Chevy 2500 pickup truck and a 1988 Chevy 1500 pickup truck, occurred just before 12:45 p.m. on Wildcat Canyon Road. Keith Sexton, of Florida, was travelling south on Wildcat Canyon Road, while Jeffrey James, 46, of Ramona, was travelling north. For reasons not known, James’ 2004 Chevy truck veered into southbound lanes near Casa de Carol and struck Sexton’s 1988 Chevy truck. James suffered only minor injuries and declined medical treatment. Sexton died at the scene. The CHP is investigating the cause of the fatal Ramona accident. Authorities do not believe speed, drugs, or alcohol were factors in the crash, but the investigation is ongoing.
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SEPTEMBER 17, 2009 – A San Diego man died Thursday in a crash on the connector ramp from southbound Interstate 5 to eastbound Highway 78, authorities have reported. The crash, which occurred just before 7 a.m. Thursday, involved a 2002 Lexus IS 300 and a big rig towing a 32 foot cargo trailer. For unknown reasons, the driver of the big rig lost control of the truck on the offramp and rolled onto the Lexus. The driver and sole occupant of the Lexus, Gustavo Gracia, 33, of north county, died at the scene. The driver of the big rig, a 32-year-old Bellflower man, was taken to Palomar Medical Center with minor injuries. The connector ramp to Highway 78 was closed for nearly five hours while authorities investigated. The California Highway Patrol is investigating the cause of the fatal Highway 5 accident.
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AUGUST 23, 2009 – The California Highway Patrol is investigating the cause of a fatal head-on collision Saturday on Del Dios Highway in Escondido. The crash involved a Dodge pickup truck and a loaded cement truck that weighed 25 tons. According to reports, Jose A. Acosta-Alvarez, 32, of San Diego was driving his pickup truck east on Del Dios Highway when, for unknown reasons, at about 11:49 a.m., he crossed into westbound lanes and collided with a cement truck. The head-on crash occurred near Lake Hodges dam, and Del Dios Hwy was closed for several hours from Calle Ambiente to Rancho Drive following the collision. According to authorities, the two vehicles crashed “headlight-to-headlight.” Both vehicles were estimated to be traveling between 40 and 45 mph. Anyone with information about the fatal collision is asked to call the Oceanside CHP office.
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AUGUST 7, 2009 – Authorities have reported Ray Gibbons II, 45, of San Diego was killed in a crash on State Highway 3 in North Dakota Thursday morning. The accident occurred about 10 miles north of Harvey, at about 9:30 a.m. According to reports, Gibbons’ vehicle crossed the center line for unknown reasons and struck a semi-truck head-on. He died at the scene of the crash. The driver of the semi-truck suffered only minor injuries. The cause of the Harvey, N.D., collision remains under investigation.
AUGUST 5, 2009 - A driver who suffered a medical emergency caused two collisions in North San Diego County, injuring himself and the driver of a delivery truck, authorities said. The first accident occurred shortly before 5:30 p.m. near the intersection of Palomar Airport Road and El Fuerte Street. That crash involved a FedEx delivery truck, according to Carlsbad police. Moments later, the driver hit another car near El Camino Real. One vehicle was knocked on its side by the impact. The injured drivers were transported by ambulances to Tri-City Medical Center in Oceanside and Palomar Medical Center in Escondido, authorities said. The Carlsbad Police Department is investigating the collisions. Investigators do not believe alcohol or drugs played a role.
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JULY 31, 2009 - The California Highway Patrol is investigating an accident involving a 1999 Chevrolet Cavalier and a box truck that killed a 70-year-old National City man on Interstate 8 in Alpine, authorities said. Dennis Conrad Wolf was a passenger in the Chevrolet Cavalier driven by his wife, a 73-year-old National City woman. They were traveling east on I-8 about 12:45 p.m. when the driver attempted to pass a box truck near the off-ramp for Viejas Casino, authorities said. The truck clipped the car’s rear bumper, causing the woman to lose control of the car and tumble 50 feet down an embankment near Willows Road, according to the CHP. Wolf died at the scene. His wife was flown to a hospital complaining of back and neck pain. The driver of the truck, a San Diego man, was not injured. The CHP is investigating the I-8 car accident.
JULY 14, 2009 – A San Diego Zoological Society employee was flown to Palomar Medical Center with serious injuries Tuesday morning after an accident involving a delivery truck, San Diego Fire-Rescue reported. The 40-year-old man, who was not identified, was pinned under the rear axle of the 12,000 pound vehicle for about a half an hour before Fire-Rescue crews were able to rescue him.
According to reports, the accident happened at 8:14 p.m., just north of the Wild Animal Park Entrance in San Pasqual. The delivery truck driver was unloading the truck and standing at the rear of the vehicle, which had its tailgate down. When he put the gate it, it rolled forward. The man tried to get into the truck but he lost his footing when it struck a curb. The truck ran over his leg, pinning the man until rescue crews could free him using inflatable air bags. The man is expected to survive.
JUNE 18, 2009 - The driver of a bobtail truck fell asleep at the wheel and crashed into a parked tractor-trailer, injuring three people, authorities said. The 21-year-old driver of the Chevrolet bobtail fell asleep while driving south on Interstate 5 about 7:15 a.m. and drifted into the stopped truck just north of Tamarack Avenue, according to the California Highway Patrol. A passenger in the bobtail suffered major injuries and both drivers had minor injuries, officials said. All three were transported to Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla. Approximately 15 gallons of diesel fuel spilled on the freeway, requiring a hazardous materials team to be called in as a precaution. Alcohol or drugs were not considered a factor in the crash, officials said. The CHP is continuing its investigation.
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MAY 8, 2009 - One woman was killed after crashing into a truck in Clairemont Mesa this morning. The unidentified 25-year-old was traveling west on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard when she lost control of her pickup truck and veered across all the lanes. She then rear-ended a parked semi. Her pickup truck caught on fire, killing the woman instantly. The victim had been speeding at the time of the crash.
MAY 6, 2009 - A box truck driver was killed in a crash in Camp Pendleton yesterday morning. 49-year-old Henry Wei was traveling north on Interstate 5 when he rear-ended a tractor-trailer that had slowed to enter an inspection station just before Basilone Road. Mr. Wei was pronounced dead at the scene. It took crews several hours to remove his body from the wreckage.
