SEPTEMBER 30, 2008 — According to a spokesman for the San Diego Fire Department, a man fell 15 feet from a bridge in the San Pasqual Valley near Ysabel Creek Road this morning at about 8 a.m.  Copter 2 of the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department flew to Bandy Canyon Road to rescue the man, who was working on the underside of the bridge when he fell.  It is not clear what caused the man to fall, or what his injuries are.  

SEPTEMBER 29, 2008 –   Rocco Disylvester, 34, of Murrieta, died Sunday when his motorcycle collided with a tractor-trailer on I-15. The accident occurred on Southbound I-15 near Deer Springs Road about 8:25 a.m. Witnesses reported the motorcyclist had been speeding and was weaving through lanes moments before hitting the big rig truck. The motorcyclist was pronounced dead at the scene.

According to data released by the United States Highway Safety Authority, more than 4,000 motorcycle riders were killed in motorcycle accidents in 2004. An estimated 80% of motorcycle crashes result in injury or death, compared to 20% for automobile crashes.

Two people were killed and five injured in an accident in Otay Mesa on September 28^th. 35-year-old Cristie Jennings was traveling westbound on Otay Mesa Road with her passengers, 22-year-old Leticia Lamp-Randolf, a 6-year-old girl and 2-year-old boy. For unknown reasons, Ms. Jennings’ car drifted across the center divider and into the eastbound lanes of Otay Mesa Road. The vehicle was then struck by a minivan, which caught on fire. Both Ms. Jennings and Ms. Lamp-Randolf died at the scene. The children were transported by helicopter to Rady Children’s Hospital with serious injuries. Other drivers stopped to help the occupants of the minivan, a man and woman, both 38, and an 11-year-old girl. All three were transported to the hospital.

The pilot of a single-engine aircraft died Sunday when his plane crashed near Carlsbad’s Palomar-McClellan airport.  The pilot, Guisseppe “Pino” Puzzo, 41, a Lake Havasu City resident, had more than 1,000 hours of flight experience.  He was flying to Carlsbad to pick up an employee of Statewide Express, a Arizona based transportation company. The time of the crash was about 7:20 a.m., near Bressi Ranch Way and El Fuerte Street in Carlsbad. The aircraft, a Beechcraft BE36 Bonanza, caught fire when it crashed to the ground. The flames sparked a small brush fire that was quickly extinguished by Carlsbad fire fighters. No one was injured on the ground. 

The pilot had reported a missed approach to the airport and was turning around to make another approach when his plane crashed.  FAA investigators visited the Carlsbad plane crash site and are looking into the cause of the accident.  Sunday’s crash is the second plane crash this week in Carlsbad.  A National Transportation And Safety Board (NTSB) spokesman said foggy conditions attributed to limited, one quarter mile visibility Sunday morning.

A man is hospitalized after an accident a tire shop in San Diego on September 24^th. A customer was being guided as she was backing her vehicle out of the shop on the 2400 block of Imperial Avenue in Logan Heights. The employee instructed the woman to stop as she approached a tow truck, but she pressed the accelerator instead, pinning the 52-year-old tow truck driver between his truck and her vehicle, a Dodge Neon. The unidentified man was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries.

SEPTEMBER 25, 2008 — It has been 30 years since Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 182 collided into a private Cessna 172 in the skies above San Diego, killing 135 passengers on the PSA flight, two people aboard the Cessna, and seven people on the ground. Plane wreckage fell into the North Park area of San Diego, and 22 homes were damaged or destroyed. The plane had been in its final approach to Lindbergh Field at about 9 a.m. when it collided with the small Cessna. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) concluded that the likely cause of the deadly collision was the failure of the PSA flight crew to adhere to proper air traffic control (ATC) procedures. There were no survivors.

The San Diego International Airport is America’s busiest single-runway commercial airport. The September 25, 1978 crash is the deadliest aviation disaster to date in California history.

SEPTEMBER 25, 2008 – A Volkswagen Bug struck a traffic signal pole in Rancho Penasquitos Wednesday night, near Stoney Creek Road at Carmel Mountain Road. The police reported the young female driver suffered a head injury and two male passengers were also injured, one with an open leg fracture. A third male passenger is not believed to be injured, but was taken to a local hospital for an evaluation.  The San Diego car  accident occurred at about 8:20 p.m.  The driver was apparently speeding on Carmel Mountain Road when she lost control of her vehicle.  It took Fire-Rescue crews to free passengers from the wrecked vehicle.

A pedestrian was killed in Clairemont Mesa on September 23^rd. A 46-year-old unidentified man was struck by a Buick as he was crossing Balboa Avenue just east of
Genesee Avenue. The Buick’s windshield shattered and the victim was thrown onto the road. A Toyota attempted to swerve and avoid the man, but hit him and dragged him 40-50 feet. The driver of the Buick stopped at the scene, but the second driver fled. The Medical Examiner will determine which impact killed the man. If his death was caused by the second vehicle, that motorist will face felony charges.

A man is injured after a motorcycle accident in Hemet. Robert Bayer was struck by a car at the intersection of Sanderson and Menlo Avenues after the driver made an illegal left turn on a red light and crossed in front of his motorcycle. Mr. Bayer was wearing a helmet, but he was knocked unconscious after his head struck the car’s front bumper. Mr. Bayer was transported to Riverside County Regional Hospital with severe injuries. He is listed in critical condition.

September 23, 2008– A two seater experimental airplane crashed into a ravine at the Crossings golf course in Carlsbad Monday afternoon, seriously injuring its 22 year old pilot and 19 year old passenger. The two men, whose names have not been released, were airlifted to Scripps La Jolla Hospital for treatment of “major” injuries, according to authorities.  The single-engine plane was owned by the Rainbow Air Academy and crashed shortly after takeoff from the nearby Palomar-McClellan airport. The crash happened at about 4:45 p.m.  The cause of the crash is currently undergoing investigation. Nobody on the ground was injured.