Motorcycle Crashes: Two people were killed on I-5 near Pacoima during Sunday's Love Ride. (Photo: LA Daily News)
Two people were killed and two others injured in separate motorcycle crashes on the same stretch of Interstate 5 near Pacoima during Sunday’s 28th annual “Love Ride” that raises money for autism research.
• Two accidents less than an hour apart took the lives of two motorcyclists and injured two other riders during the charity Love Ride on Sunday.
• The first accident involved multiple vehicles. The riders were hospitalized but expected to be fine.
• In the second accident, a rider and his passenger were thrown off their bike and under the trailer of a big-rig. They died at the scene.
The two freeway accidents occurred within about an hour of each other on northbound I-5 near Highway 170 (the Hollywood Freeway), just south of Branford Street, according to a Los Angeles Times report.
The first accident, which involved two motorcycles and and multiple cars, happened at 10:24 a.m., California Highway Patrol officer Christian Cracraft said.
Both bikers were taken to local hospitals to be treated for serious injuries. The accident blocked three out of five lanes and brought traffic to a halt, causing a lot of confusion.
“There were people walking in traffic lanes,” CHP officer Ed Jacobs said.
The traffic was still jammed about 45 minutes later — at 11:10 a.m. — when the second accident occurred in the same spot. A male biker, 51-year-old Romarino Zeri of Marina Del Rey, and his female passenger, 38-year-old Julie Cameron of Torrance, were run over by a big-rig.
Zeri was splitting the third and fourth lanes at 15 to 20 mph when his motorcycle veered left and collided with the big-rig’s right side trailer wheels, according to a Marina Del Rey Patch report. Zeri and Cameron both were thrown off of the motorcycle and under the right rear of the trailer’s double wheels, the CHP report said.
Both of them were pronounced dead at the scene. The 52-year-old driver of the tractor-trailer was not hurt. The accident is still under investigation. No one was cited or arrested.
Founded in 1984 Glendale Harley-Davidson owner by Oliver Shokouh, the annual Love Ride is one of Southern California’s largest motorcycle gatherings. The 2011 ride benefited Autism Speaks, a New York-based organization dedicated to funding research into the causes, treatments and a cure for autism, according to the event website.
About 2,000 riders, including comedian and late night talk show host Jay Leno, participated in Sunday’s ride. In the past, as many as 20,000 riders have participated, according to the Los Angeles Daily News. The fundraiser has drawn celebrity riders such as Peter Fonda, Leno and Larry Hagman and has featured musical acts such as Robbie Krieger, Billy Idol, Jackson Browne and Dwight Yoakam.
Because of the sheer number of riders, accidents during the Love Ride are a common occurrence, Jacobs said. But there has never been a fatality, according to race organizers.
“During the 28 years of doing the Love Ride, we have never had a single fatality, so this is sad beyond words,” founder Oliver Shokouch told ABC News.
Here are more photos from the accident scene. Click on a thumbnail to see it larger.
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