CAMARILLO : Driver Dies as Truck Jumps Freeway Divider

A tractor without a trailer flipped from a southbound lane on the Ventura Freeway over to the northbound lanes in Camarillo on Thursday, killing the driver and spilling 75 gallons of diesel fuel.

The accident, which occurred about 8:30 a.m. during rush-hour, backed up traffic for more than eight miles, as far as the Conejo Grade on the northbound side, and as far as the Santa Clara River bridge on the southbound side.

The driver, Mark Butcher, 44, of Ojai was crushed by the tractor and was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.

Another tractor-trailer and a small car collided while trying to avoid the tractor, but the drivers of those vehicles were not hurt, authorities said.

Investigators said they do not know what caused Butcher to lose control and flip over the guardrail south of the Central Avenue off-ramp. An autopsy revealed no evidence of drug or alcohol use, and he apparently did not suffer a stroke or heart attack, said Jim Wingate, Ventura County deputy coroner.

“Physically, he was in excellent, excellent shape,” Wingate said.

Butcher, who worked for trucking company U.S. Xpress, was on his way to Camarillo to pick up a load from Packard Bell Electronics, company officials said. He had been employed at the company for about four months and had a clean driving record.

The California Highway Patrol said Butcher lost control of his tractor and overturned from the southbound fast lane over the guardrail into the northbound fast lanes.

Ramesh Raminali, who was driving a Toyota Celica in the northbound lanes, swerved to avoid Butcher’s vehicle as it came over the guardrail. That caused Frank Talmadge, who was driving a tractor-trailer two lanes over, to swerve to avoid hitting Raminali, the CHP said.

Raminali hit Talmadge’s tractor-trailer, and Talmadge jackknifed the truck onto the right shoulder and crashed into a chain-link fence.

Traffic on both sides of the Ventura Freeway was stalled for at least two hours while officials worked to clear the accident. CHP officers squeezed traffic from three lanes to one lane on both sides of the freeway.