Tragedy in Chino Hills
In a tragic accident in Chino Hills, a truck crashed into a group of workers cleaning along Highway 71, leaving one dead, two severely injured, and chaos in traffic on Monday morning.
The accident occurred in the northbound lanes of Highway 71, where a cleaning crew of about seven workers contracted by Caltrans was working behind the right shoulder guardrail, just past Euclid Avenue. A few meters behind them on the right shoulder was their Ford Transit van with an attached trailer, both with flashing warning lights.
All team members were out of the white Ford Transit van except the van's driver, 59-year-old William Hope from Beaumont.
Around 8:37 a.m., a Peterbilt cargo truck sideswiped the parked van, causing the truck to lose control, according to Rodrigo Jimenez, public information officer for the California Highway Patrol.
Video from the scene on ABC7 shows that the work van had a Chrysalis logo, a nonprofit organization providing job readiness programs to help low-income and homeless individuals find employment. Jimenez confirmed that the team members were from Chrysalis.
The truck veered off the road and crashed into the guardrail where the team was working.
As the truck descended onto the highway shoulder, it struck two of the workers, both residents of San Bernardino County, initially killing one, a 54-year-old man who sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene by the Chino Valley Fire Department.
The second team member who was struck, a 36-year-old man, was transported to Pomona Valley Medical Center with serious injuries. No names have been released as of Monday afternoon.
Hope, the Ford Transit driver, was also taken to the hospital with minor injuries.
Officials are still investigating why the truck sideswiped the parked van.
The truck driver, 34-year-old Ruben Gallegos from Pomona, complied with a sobriety test, which ruled out any impairment including alcohol or drugs, Jimenez said.
"We are still trying to determine why the driver lost control, but so far, there are no criminal charges," he said.
Jimenez cautioned that drivers should change lanes when they see workers or emergency responders stopped on the side of the road, per California's Move Over law, giving them "a cushion."
If drivers cannot change lanes due to traffic, Jimenez said motorists should slow down when passing and be alert on the road.
The two northbound lanes on Highway 71 were closed Monday morning and part of the afternoon, with the only open lane being the carpool lane, so "as we approach peak traffic hours, this is going to affect [traffic]," Jimenez said.
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