Farm Worker Killed in 2-Vehicle Collision

A farm worker was killed Tuesday night when the truck he was driving northbound on Rice Avenue between Wooley Road and Channel Islands Boulevard was clipped by a convertible heading in the same direction.

The truck’s driver, an employee of the Oxnard Pest Control Assn. whom police did not identify, was hauling several gallons of a pesticide known as Lorsban and a 500-gallon tank of water used to dilute the chemical.

The truck was traveling near the shoulder at about 4:25 p.m. when it was struck by a blue, 1960s model Pontiac Firebird convertible, whose driver was not identified.

“[The Pontiac’s driver] lost control, spun out and hit the tractor,” said Dave Cockrill, a California Highway Patrol spokesman. The accident investigation will take several weeks, he said.

The impact of the collision flipped the roofless truck, which is used to spray pesticides on crops, onto its side--ejecting the farm worker and spilling about two gallons of the pesticide on the road. The pesticide, classified as an organic phosphate, is used to control insects on row crops and is not considered dangerous to humans.

Both drivers were taken to St. John’s Medical Center in Oxnard. The driver of the truck died a short time later. The Pontiac’s driver sustained major injuries, according to Cockrill.

The accident snarled traffic for several miles in all directions as Fire Department hazardous materials crews cordoned off the area during rush hour.

The stalled traffic led to several other minor collisions as drivers attempted to bypass the gridlock by driving down dirt farm roads and made U-turns into oncoming traffic.

The section of Rice Avenue where the accident occurred remained closed for several additional hours while the hazardous materials workers cleaned up the spilled pesticide, and the wreckage was cleared. The road was expected to be reopened by midnight.