Pedestrian Hit by 4 Vehicles : Bizarre Freeway Mishaps Leave 1 Dead, 2 Injured

In a series of bizarre freeway incidents Monday, a man died after being struck by a dump truck, a pedestrian sustained moderate injuries after being hit by four drivers, and a wheel that came off a truck and crashed through the windshield of a car left the motorist with serious injuries.

The fatal accident occurred on the 55 Freeway south of Chapman Avenue late Monday night while the road was closed for construction. Jacques S. Yeager, son of E.L. Construction Co. owner Jack Yeager, was driving a dump truck and trailer rig south on the far right lane of the highway about 10:30 p.m. when he struck co-worker David R. Aisner of Bellflower, according to the CHP. Paramedics pronounced Aisner dead at the scene.

Not Wearing Safety Vest

According to the CHP, Yeager did not see Aisner, who was walking in an unlit area of the road and was not wearing a reflective safety vest at the time. The rig jackknifed when the accident occurred, but Yeager apparently was not harmed, officers said.

Dan Hunter, safety director of the construction company, which has contracted with the California Department of Transportation to repave a section of the freeway, said the area of the freeway where the accident occurred was not lit except by truck lights because the road was closed and the main construction activity was north of where Aisner was walking. All lights on Yeager’s truck were working, he said.

Aisner’s failure to wear a safety vest was contrary to company requirements, Hunter said.

“It is an unfortunate incident, and we still don’t understand what happened,” he said. Yeager is “a highly trained worker” who meets all the requirements for his job, he added.

The CHP said no charges have been filed and that the accident is still being investigated.

In the second incident, Jorge Rodriquez of Santa Ana suffered moderate injuries after being struck by four cars on Interstate 5 southbound near La Palma Avenue about 11:45 p.m. Monday. Rodriguez, apparently in an intoxicated state, had wandered onto the freeway, the CHP said. The fourth vehicle only “bumped” Rodriguez, the CHP said, but its driver stopped and called police. Rodriguez was taken to UCI Medical Center with moderate injuries to the left arm. The CHP is looking for the drivers of the other three vehicles, whose description has not been released.

Condition Improves

In connection with the third incident, a UCI Medical Center spokeswoman said the condition of a man whose windshield was shattered by a tractor-trailer wheel Monday has been upgraded from critical to serious.

Ronald Solk, 37, of Tustin was driving north on I-5 near Euclid Street about 2:20 p.m. Monday when the right rear wheel of a southbound tractor-trailer detached and bounced across the freeway over a dividing fence. It shattered the windshield of Solk’s ’84 Nissan, knocking him unconscious, the CHP said. The car then veered off the road and into bushes on the right shoulder. Solk had to be cut from the vehicle by the Anaheim Fire Department.

Michael Dio, 25, of Delano was driving the three-axle truck. Officers said they do not know whether the wheel was loose or was knocked off by an obstacle in the road. No charges have been filed in the incident, which is under investigation, the CHP said.