LOCAL : Crash, Truck Fire in Laguna Hills Backs Up I-5 Traffic for 20 Miles

Traffic along the southbound lanes of the San Diego Freeway was jammed for about 20 miles at 7 a.m. today in the aftermath of a collision and truck fire five hours earlier in Laguna Hills.

According to the California Highway Patrol, the lengthy cleanup of the 2 a.m. accident near the Alicia Parkway exit of Interstate 5 had traffic backed up for about 11 miles to the Costa Mesa Freeway by 6 a.m., and all the way to the Garden Grove Freeway interchange by 7 a.m.

CHP spokesman Ken Daily said the accident occurred near Alicia Parkway when Ramon Jose Bernardo, 34, of San Diego, driving a two-axle truck similar to a moving van, drifted off the freeway’s right lane and onto the shoulder. There, Robert Lawrence Prible, 39, of San Clemente was working under the hood of his 1968 Buick.

Prible sustained minor injuries when the truck collided with his car. The crash caused the truck’s right fuel tank to rupture and burst into flames. By the time firefighters arrived, the vehicle was fully involved and had spilled burning fuel into a storm drain.

The cleanup required shutting down the southbound side of the freeway to the 1 and 2 lanes for several hours. Workers cleared the scene at 7:42 a.m., but the residual backup from the accident continued throughout the morning commute hours.