2 Freeways Reopen After Major Tie-Ups Are Cleared

The northbound San Diego Freeway in West Los Angeles and the southbound Harbor Freeway in the Carson area were reopened to traffic Saturday morning after being closed for hours by a traffic accident and a shooting.

The northbound San Diego Freeway was shut down at the Santa Monica Freeway junction at about 1 p.m. Friday when a gasoline tanker truck overturned, spilling part of its load and blocking all five northbound lanes.

The accident, which occurred just before the start of the three-day holiday weekend, jammed traffic well into the night, creating what the California Highway Patrol called “total gridlock” that trapped thousands of motorists on the freeway and surrounding surface streets.

Officers said the cleanup took about 11 hours, and freeway was not reopened to northbound traffic until 12:45 a.m. Saturday.

The southbound Harbor Freeway was closed shortly after 3:30 a.m. after a motorist spotted a disabled pickup in the right hand lane just south of the San Diego Freeway overpass.

Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies said they found a 21-year-old Carson man behind the wheel of the vehicle with a gunshot wound in his head.

The victim, whose identity was withheld pending notification of relatives, was taken to a Torrance hospital and was listed in critical condition Saturday afternoon.

Deputies closed the southbound lanes of the freeway during a three-hour search for evidence. The lanes were reopened to traffic at about 7 a.m.