SHERMAN OAKS (CNS) – A motorist driving north on the southbound side of the San Diego (405) Freeway in Sherman Oaks slammed head-on into another vehicle Tuesday, leaving the wrong-way driver dead and two other people injured, while forcing a hourslong closure of most freeway lanes that caused a torturous rush hour for thousands of commuters.
California Highway Patrol officers responded at 4:06 a.m. Tuesday to the southbound 405 Freeway near the Valley Vista Boulevard exit, where the collision occurred, CHP Officer Sergio Garcia told City News Service.
A CHP spokesman at the scene told reporters the driver was initially reported driving the wrong way in the southbound carpool lane near the Getty Center.
The driver ultimately slammed into another vehicle head-on, and multiple other cars were also involved in the wreck.
The wrong-way driver was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the CHP. He was not immediately identified, with officials saying only it was a man believed to be in his 30s. The driver of the vehicle he struck was taken to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center with critical injuries, including multiple broken bones, but he was alert and talking to officers and paramedics, according to the CHP.
One other person was evaluated at the scene but declined further medical treatment, according to Mark McLean of the Los Angeles Fire Department.
A SigAlert, issued at 4:26 a.m. closing all southbound lanes, was cancelled at 9:38 a.m.
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