Man Killed as Pickup Hits Van on Freeway
A 27-year-old La Puente man was killed Tuesday after the pickup truck he was driving struck a delivery van on the northbound Long Beach Freeway, police said.
The crash occurred around 11:15 a.m. near Atlantic Boulevard, said California Highway Patrol public affairs officer Louis Gutierrez. The right lane of the freeway shut down for more than an hour.
The man, whose name was not released pending notification of the family, was driving at a high speed when he veered to the right after noticing traffic had slowed ahead, Gutierrez said.
His 1991 Ford Ranger struck the right rear of the van and a piece of metal from the truck sliced the man’s neck, killing him, Gutierrez said.
After striking the van, the truck veered into a rail, sideswiped a 1994 Ford van and rear-ended a tractor trailer before coming to a stop, Gutierrez said.
Paramedics arrived a few minutes later and pronounced the man dead. There were no other injuries.
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