Man Killed When Vehicle Falls 20 Feet

A Lakeview Terrace man was killed Sunday morning when his minivan veered off the transition between the Golden State and Hollywood freeways and plunged 20 feet into the Tujunga Wash flood control channel, officials said.

Identification of the 69-year-old victim was withheld pending notification of relatives.

The accident was reported about 8:20 a.m. by a witness who did not leave his name, said California Highway Patrol Officer Karen Faciane.

Officers and paramedics found the 1995 Dodge Caravan on its left side with the driver pinned underneath, said Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Brian Humphrey. The man was pronounced dead at the scene, Humphrey said.

Officials think his vehicle was the only one involved in the accident, Faciane said. From evidence gathered at the scene, they pieced together what they believe happened.

“He was southbound on the [Golden State] freeway,” Faciane said, “making the transition to the Hollywood Freeway.”

For some reason, the driver didn’t make it entirely onto the transition road and ended up in the triangle-shaped area between the two freeways.

He hit a curb, Faciane said, “and then continued down the center and hit a tree. That propelled the vehicle down an embankment and caused it to roll over on its roof.”

The van then struck the top of a fence that separates the freeway from the channel, went over the fence and landed on its side in the wash, she said.

CHP officers are trying to determine why the driver ended up in the area between the freeways.