Two Dead in Los Angeles Truck Accident, Driver Arrested
A truck went out of control and crashed into several vehicles on Wednesday, ending up in a Los Angeles bookstore and leaving a 12-year-old and her father dead. At least 12 other people suffered injuries in the tractor-trailer accident and three of them continue to be in a critical condition. Several cars were left damaged in the accident that took place at a La Canada Flintridge intersection.
The driver of the truck, Marcos Costa was questioned, and then arrested on suspicion of felony reckless driving and gross vehicular manslaughter. Costa was driving a car transporter on Wednesday, when he apparently passed a sign that prohibited trucks and tractor trailers the size of his vehicle. According to preliminary investigations, the truck’s brakes were beginning to fail by the time it reached the intersection. The tractor-trailer first struck a car, and then rammed into at least five more vehicles. Leaving a trail of overturned vehicles and injured people, the large truck then crashed into a nearby bookstore. At the end of the rampage, Angelina Pasco and her father were dead. Several others were hospitalized for their injuries.
Making matters worse was the fact that the accident occurred during afternoon rush hour. The accident has shocked families of those injured and city authorities, who say they have sent repeated requests for trucks to be prohibited on some parts of the highway to the state of Department of Transportation. City officials also asked the DOT for signage that could warn trucks about the street, and the installation of a truck escape lane that would allow trucks in accidents like the one here, to move out of the intersection. However, those requests went largely unheeded as the DOT and city authorities failed to agree on the location of the truck escape lane. There earlier had been a runaway truck lane just before these vehicles entered La Canada, but it was closed by Caltrans 10 years ago because “truck safety on the route had improved”, at least according to Caltrans.
The deadly Los Angeles truck accident has predictably resulted in finger pointing between the city and Caltrans with Mayor Laura Olhasso openly voicing her anger that the city’s demand for an escape lane and other truck safety improvements were largely ignored. Caltrans is sticking to its line that the road is safe if truck drivers only take care to follow all rules while driving. Olhasso, at a news conference, has now asked for a complete ban on these large trucks that use Angeles Crest Highway to enter the city. This has not been the first accident involving a large truck in the area. Last year, a semi-truck crashed into several cars in a parking lot after the truck’s brakes failed. Several vehicles were damaged in that accident and one person was injured.
It make more sense for city and state agencies responsible for the maintenance of highways to make improvements to these to make them safer instead of having to deal with California truck accident lawyers after a tragic crash like this.