Injury accident snarls 210 Freeway in La Crescenta

A man in his 60s had to be airlifted to a hospital with severe injuries after his truck slammed into the back of a big rig on the eastbound Foothill (210) Freeway in La Crescenta on Friday.

A helicopter airlifted the victim, whose identity was not immediately available, to Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center with severe cuts to his face, arms and legs, in addition to internal trauma, Glendale Fire Battalion Chief Tom Propst said.

The crash, which occurred in the eastbound lanes of the freeway just past Lowell Avenue, was reported about 3:20 p.m. after the man’s pickup apparently slammed into the big rig’s trailer. The pickup’s hood was pushed back into the cabin, pinning the man against his steering wheel and foot well, Propst said.

Firefighters had to use the Jaws of Life to extricate the man as the California Highway Patrol temporarily closed all lanes of the 210 Freeway for the helicopter’s landing.

The driver of the big rig was uninjured in the crash, Propst said.

Authorities started reopening some lanes of the freeway at about 4:25 p.m., but by then, traffic had already backed up in both directions, and it remained clogged for much of the evening commute.

The cause of the crash is under investigation.

-- Jason Wells, Times Community News

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