Major uptick in collisions accompanies wet weather
A man was killed in a two-vehicle collision on Tuesday morning in Castaic, according to a spokesperson with the California Highway Patrol Newhall-area Office.
Following the Santa Clarita Valley’s first significant rain of the fall season, officials are urging drivers to remain cautious when commuting.
CHP officers responded to a report of a two-vehicle traffic collision on Highway 126 east of Travel Village, a recreational vehicle park just west of Interstate 5, at 7:32 a.m., CHP Officer Carlos Burgos-Lopez said during a brief phone call with The Signal.
When officers arrived at the scene of the crash, a Hispanic man was found inside one of the vehicles, he said, and the Los Angeles County Fire Department declared the man dead on arrival. No other transports were reported, according to Edith Lai, a spokeswoman for the L.A. County Fire Department.
According to preliminary information, the man was driving his vehicle and for unknown reasons collided with a stopped semi-truck on the side of the road, Burgos-Lopez said. No other individuals were involved in the crash, he added. It is unknown if heavy rainfall was a factor in the crash as of the publication of this story.
According to Burgos-Lopez, there was a spike in crashes throughout the area due to the wet weather Tuesday morning.
CHP Newhall officers responded to 57 crashes as early as 7 a.m., Burgos-Lopez said, with many of them being a result of the rain. Those crashes included areas of Interstate 5, State Route 14, SR 126, SR 138, as well as I-210 and SR 118 in areas of the San Fernando Valley that are also patrolled by the Newhall-area office.
Those crashes do not include surface streets.
A big rig crash on the northbound side of I-5 near Valencia Boulevard shut down the onramp for a brief period, according to Burgos-Lopez.
A three-vehicle collision involving two big rigs and a boxed truck at approximately 10:07 a.m. caused one of the big rigs to become disabled on the northbound lanes, prompting officials to shut down the Nos. 3 and 4 lanes, according to Burgos-Lopez. No injuries were reported.
Burgos-Lopez advised commuters to slow down when driving, to look out for water accumulation on the roadways, and to maintain their vehicles with adequate tires to take on the rainy weather.
He also asked drivers to pay attention at all times and be on the lookout for road workers and emergency responders throughout the day as they work in wet conditions.
The SCV is looking at clearer weather beginning Wednesday, and the main front of the rainstorm had already passed through the valley as of midday Tuesday, National Weather Service meteorologist John Dumas said.
Some thunderstorms, brief winds, and hail are expected for Tuesday afternoon, he said, but “the bulk of the system has already gone through there.”
Warmer, drier weather that’s more typical this time of year will return Wednesday, with a bit of “weak north wind,” Dumas said.
As the storm passes, he asked drivers to avoid roadways that may accumulate water because “if you can’t see the road underneath it, don’t try and drive through it there. There might not be any road left under there. It could have been eroded away, and it only takes a couple of inches to float a car away.”
“Give yourself extra time for the commute. Give yourself extra stopping distance between you and the car in front of you,” Dumas added.
The forecast for the SCV is as follows:
- Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 66. Calm wind becoming west around 5 mph in the afternoon.
- Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 76. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 15 mph.
- Friday: Sunny, with a high near 78.
- Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 81.
