A motorcyclist who was splitting lanes was run over and killed by a large truck, as a pickup truck driver changed lanes on the Santa Ana (5) Freeway in Downey Friday afternoon.
The driver of the truck did not stop at the crash, and a major rush hour traffic jam developed, a California Highway Patrol officer said Saturday.
The wreck was reported just after 4 p.m. Friday on the southbound 5 Freeway, past Lakewood Boulevard.
A 19-year-old man was driving a 1999 Toyota sedan in the left-most lane, as the motorcyclist was riding between the number one and two lanes and traveling faster than general traffic on a 2016 Yamaha motorcycle, the CHP report said.
The Toyota driver, approaching the San Gabriel River (605) Freeway interchange, changed lanes to the right, as the motorcycle came up from behind on the right.
The 43-year-old motorcyclist was ejected from his bike and tumbled into the third lane, where he was run over by a large truck, the CHP report said.
He was pronounced dead at the scene, and the driver of the tractor/trailer did not stop at the crash scene.
The Toyota driver was not publicly named.
The CHP’s Santa Fe Springs office asked anyone with any information regarding the crash to call them at (562) 868-0503.
—City News Service