CAMARILLO : Ventura Man Killed in Traffic Accident

A Ventura man running an errand for a friend was killed in a traffic accident near Camarillo on Tuesday, about three hours after a man who commuted 100 miles to work in Simi Valley was killed by a truck tractor east of the city, authorities said.

Bruce Earl Lani Crowell, 60, of Ventura was killed instantly about 2 p.m. when his pickup truck was broadsided by a large flatbed truck carrying a load of railroad ties, said Officer Staci Morse of the California Highway Patrol.

She said the truck driver, Mario E. Monge, 26, of Pico Rivera, had pulled forward from a stop sign on Wood Street south of Camarillo Airport. His truck collided with the pickup headed west on 5th Street, which does not have a stop sign.

Crowell had borrowed a friend’s truck to collect some parts for the friend’s business and was not wearing a seat belt at the time of accident. His pickup was pushed through the intersection and into a telephone pole, Morse said.

Monge, the truck driver, was not injured. He was not cited for any violations at the scene, but Morse said the investigation was continuing. She said alcohol did not appear to be involved.

Earlier on Tuesday, Michael Moore, 38, of San Bernardino was killed as he stood next to his disabled vehicle on the shoulder of the Simi Valley Freeway.

The cab of a tractor-trailer, veering to avoid another car, struck Moore about 10:15 a.m. The accident occurred 600 feet east of the Ventura County line, Deputy Coroner Mitch Breese said.

Moore, who commuted about 100 miles to his job at Countrywide Funding Corp. in Simi Valley, was pronounced dead at 11:15 a.m. at Simi Valley Hospital, police said.