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A drunk driver and a beer truck collided on the freeway in Santa Fe Springs. Both drivers were injured.

Last call: A suspected drunk driver crashed into a beer truck on Interstate 605 in Santa Fe Springs on Tuesday afternoon. No beer was spilled.

•   A beer truck was heading south on I-605 when a suspected drunk driver in an Audi entered the freeway from the I-5 transition road.

•   The Audi crashed into the beer truck, and the truck jackknifed and overturned. 

•   No beer was spilled.

•   Both drivers apparently suffered minor injuries.

The freeway accident occurred at about 1 p.m., according to a report in the Pasadena Star-News.

California Highway Patrol Officer Al Perez said the beer truck was traveling southbound on I-605 — the San Gabriel River Freeway — at about 50 to 55 mph when the accident happened.

The semi truck was in the No. 3 lane when a blue Audi entered the freeway from the transition road from southbound Interstate 5. The Audi, driven by a  26-year-old man from South Gate, crashed into the beer truck. The truck jackknifed and overturned onto its side.

None of the beer spilled onto the freeway.

The truck driver, a 45-year-old man from North Hollywood, complained of shoulder pain but declined a trip to the hospital. The Audi driver  complained of back and shoulder pain and was transported to St. Francis Medical Center in Lynwood, Perez said.

The transition road was closed for about three hours and all but the carpool lane Looky-loo drivers

Perez said the CHP hadn’t yet determined which vehicle made an unsafe lane change that caused the crash. There was no word as to whether the suspected drunk driver was arrested after he was released from the hospital.

Strange Freeway Spills

No beer was spilled on the freeway in this accident, but many other truck crashes can’t say the same. Live penguins, dead alligators, sausage, doughnut glaze and fake blood are among the cargo that trucks have spilled onto highways around the world, according to a report on the Web Urbanist website. The site lists 15 epic spills. Here are a few:

• Whale guts: A whale carcass exploded on its way from the beach to a research lab in Taiwan, spewing entrails all over the roadway.
• Fake blood:  A big-rig carrying 8,000 gallons of synthetic blood hit a curb and jackknifed in Sugar Land, Texas, splattering the faux gore across the freeway.
• Bees: At least 35 million bees were spilled in separate truck accidents in Montana, California, and Canada during the past several years.
• Doughnut glaze: A tractor-trailer crashed in Seattle and spilled hundreds of gallons of sticky-sweet glaze into a culvert.
• Nickels: A truck carrying coins from the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia to the Federal Reserve in Miami crashed in Brevard County, Florida, and spilled $185,000 worth of nickels onto the highway.

Santa Fe Springs Freeway Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented freeway accident victims for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

Cal freshman Andrew Crowley (inset) suffered a severe head injury when he fell while climbing the wall of a Berkeley frat house. (Photo: Cal Bears)

A freshman at U.C. Berkeley is in a coma after suffering a critical head injury Saturday night when he fell while climbing down a drainpipe at a fraternity house.

•   A Cal freshman who had been drinking attempted to climb down a three-story frat house by clinging to a drainpipe.

•   The pipe broke and he fell to the ground. He suffered severe head and neck injuries.

•   The young man is in a coma, in critical condition, at Highland Hospital.

•   Police say no foul play is suspected.

The tragic accident occurred at  about 11:30 p.m., according to a report in the Berkeley Voice.

University officials said Andrew Crowley, a member of the Cal crew team, was found on a path between the Phi Gamma Delta and Phi Kappa Tau fraternity houses on Piedmont Avenue.

Berkeley police Sgt. Mary Kusmiss said Crowley was unconscious and had an obvious and severe brain injury with “a lot of bleeding” when police arrived at the scene. She said he ”displayed objective symptoms of alcoholic beverage intoxication.”

Witnesses said Crowley had been climbing down a drainpipe on the back side of the three-story Phi Gamma Delta house — known as the Fiji house — at 2395 Piedmont Avenue.  They said he had made it about halfway down when the pipe came loose from the building. He fell backward to the ground.

Crowley suffered severe head trauma and a broken neck, the Daily Californian reported. He was rushed to the Level II trauma center at Highland Hospital in Oakland, where spokesperson Jerri Randrup confirmed that he was in critical condition.

Phi Gamma Delta president John Fitzgerald said Crowley had not been inside of the house on Saturday. He said no one knew he was climbing or had fallen from the house until police arrived.

“We’re not sure why he would choose to do that,” Fitzgerald said.

Crowley is not a member of the fraternity, but his brother Spencer was a member before he graduated from Cal last year, Fitzgerald said.

Kusmiss told the Daily Cal that no evidence of foul play was found. The Berkeley Police Department is treating the incident as a “terrible accident,” she said, but “homicide detectives were notified due to the severity of the young man’s injuries.”

Berkeley Head Injury Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented head injury victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

Ten students were injured Friday when two passenger vans crashed on Highway 101 near Bradley, about 90 miles south of Monterey.

•   Two passenger vans carrying 22 University of Washington students to a conference in Santa Maria crashed into each other on Highway 101 in Bradley.

•   One of the vans rolled over, ejecting two of the students through the windows.

•   Four of the students were hospitalized with major injuries. Six others suffered minor injuries.

The highway accident occurred shortly before 12:30 p.m., according to a report in the Monterey Herald.

California Highway Patrol officer Joel Newby said the two 15-seater Ford passenger vans, each of which was carrying 11 University of Washington students, were headed to a conference in Santa Maria.

The vans were traveling side by side when they approached a rest stop near Bradley. The van in the right lane veered into the left lane for unknown reasons and hit the right side of the other van, Newby said. The van that was hit then swerved out of control, veering into the dirt median and back across the southbound lanes onto the dirt shoulder, where it rolled over.

“One of the vans rolled, and two of the (students) were ejected as a result of the collision,” CalFire spokesman Jonathan Pangburn told KSBW News.

Those two students went through glass windows. They suffered major injuries and were airlifted via separate helicopters to Level II trauma centers. Two other students are suffered serious injuries and were transported via ground ambulance to local hospitals.

The other injured students sustained minor injuries and declined medical treatment, choosing instead to continue to the conference. They students range in age from 18 to 22. They are residents of Seattle, Olympia and Mill Creek, Newby said.

University spokesman Bob Roseth told the Santa Maria Times that there were three buses transporting a total of 33 students to the conference, but only two were involved in the accident.

The students are undergraduates at the university’s Foster School of Business. They belong to an organization that helps American students secure internships abroad, and helps foreign students get internships here, Roseth said. All of the student were going to the organization’s regional conference in Santa Maria.

Monterey County Passenger Van Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented passenger van accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

Three people were killed in a chain-reaction DUI crash in King City.

Three people were killed Wednesday night when a drunk driver reached for her cell phone and slammed her SUV into a funeral caravan on Highway 101 in King City, about 45 miles south of Salinas.

•   A drunk driver reached for her phone and lost control of her SUV. It crossed the center median and crashed into several cars.

•   Three people were killed. 

•   Six people were hospitalized, including the drunk driver.

•   The driver who caused the accident will face charges of gross vehicular manslaughter and felony drunk driving.

The fatal accident occurred at about 8:45 p.m just north of King City on Highway 101 near Jolon Road, according to reports in the Monterey Herald and the San Francisco Chronicle.

Three people were killed in the chain-reaction pileup, which involved nine vehicles and sent six people to hospitals.

California Highway Patrol officer Zoltan Treiner said 42-year-old Vivian Ramirez of Gonzales was driving a 2006 Ford sports utility vehicle southbound on the highway when she reached for her cellphone and lost control of her vehicle. The SUV swerved across the center median near Jolon Road and crashed into a northbound funeral caravan.

There were four people in the first car, a 2000 Volkswagen driven by 37-year-old Rafael Zambrano Llamas of Napa, was thrown through the windshield and died at the scene. One of his passengers, 39-year-old Graciela Llamas of Napa, also died at the scene. A second passenger, 53-year-old Maria Ochoa Llamas of Pleasanton, was airlifted to Fresno Community Hospital, where she died.

After hitting the Volkswagen, the SUV slammed head-on into the second car in the caravan, a 2009 Toyota. A 45-year-old female passenger in that car suffered moderate injuries and was transported to Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital. Her condition was not known.

The chain reaction continued when a northbound 2003 Chevrolet — driven by a 28-year-old Napa man — slowed down after the crash and was rear-ended by a 2004 Honda,  driven by a 57-year-old Greenfield man. The Chevrolet driver and his passenger, a 45-year-old Napa woman, suffered moderate injuries. The Honda driver suffered minor injuries. All three were taken to Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital.

Then, another northbound vehicle hit the engine that had been ripped out of the Volkswagen during the crash. He then swerved and hit a southbound vehicle that overturned onto its side. Neither driver was hurt, Treiner said.

Three other cars traveling north on 101 hit one another as they tried to avoid the crash, Treiner said. Two drivers and a passenger suffered minor injuries.

Ramirez, the drunk driver, sustained major injuries and was taken to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center to be treated. She will be arrested on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence, Treiner said.

King City Drunk Driving Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented drunk driving accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

Seven people were critically injured when a car slammed into a bus stop on the 110 freeway in Los Angeles. (Photo: NBC News)

Seven pedestrians were critically injured Wednesday afternoon when a car plowed into a Metro bus stop on the Harbor Freeway — Interstate 110 — in Los Angeles.

•   A motorist who was traveling in the carpool lane accidentally turned into a bus-only lane on the freeway.

•   When he swerved to avoid hitting a bus, his vehicle went up on a bus stop platform and plowed into a group of waiting passengers.

•   Seven people were hospitalized with injuries. Six of them were reportedly in critical but stable condition.

•   The CHP conducted a field sobriety test but did not release the results.

The horrific pedestrian accident occurred at around 3:15 p.m., according to an NBC News report.

California Highway Patrol officer Tatiana Sauquillo said a driver in a blue sedan was traveling in the northbound car pool lane on I-110 when it turned into a bus-only lane under the I-105 freeway.

The driver swerved onto the platform to avoid hitting a bus and plowed into a group of passengers waiting in the Silver Line busway.

Five men and one woman were transported to local hospitals, where they were listed in critical but stable condition Tuesday night. A seventh passenger was treated for minor injuries, according to fire officials.

CHP investigators conducted a field sobriety test at the scene, including a breathalyzer test. The results of the test were not released.

The accident remains under investigation.

Pedestrian Accident Statistics

More than 4,000 pedestrians are killed every year — 11 every day — after being struck by motor vehicles, according to the latest National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) statistics. An additional 59,000 are seriously injured.

The latest NHTSA figures show that:

• 69 percent of pedestrians killed in 2009 were males.
• Almost three out of every four pedestrian fatalities occur in urban areas (72 percent).
• The top four states for pedestrian fatalities are California, Florida, Texas, and New York. These four states make up 41 percent of pedestrian fatalities nationwide while only accounting for 5 percent of the total traffic fatalities across the country.
• Nearly one-half (48 percent) of all pedestrian fatalities occurred on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday — 70 percent occur at night (4 p.m. to 4 a.m.).

Los Angeles Pedestrian Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented pedestrian accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

Distracted driving is an epidemic in San Diego County.

Distracted driving is becoming a major cause of car accidents — and it is an epidemic in San Diego County, where more than 450 people were cited and fined for texting while driving in less than a week.

•  In just six days, police ticketed 470 drivers for cellphone violations — and logged another 556 cases that weren’t ticketed.

•   Drivers who use hand-held devices are four times more likely to get into accidents.  

•   80 percent of vehicle crashes involve some sort of inattention.

•  Texting or talking on a cell phone is the top source of driver inattention.

Lt. David Gilmore, traffic coordinator for the San Diego Sheriff’s department, told KPBS News there’s probably at least one cell phone in every car on the road in San Diego County.

Gilmore equates distracted driving with drunk driving, because “you’re not able to focus on your primary objective, which is to drive down the road and not have a collision.”

Last week in San Diego County, sheriff’s deputies and California Highway Patrol officers ticketed 467 adults and three juveniles for driving whle texting or talking on their cellphones, according to a Channel 10 News report.

In addition to the drivers who were ticketed, law enforcement officers logged 556 instances of seeing drivers violating laws related to cell phones, but those drivers were not cited because the officers were handling more important business, Gilmore told Channel 10.

That’s more than 1,000 drivers in one week alone — and those are only the ones who were caught.

The minimum fine for talking without a hands-free device, or texting on a cell phone, is $159 for a first offense, Gilmore said. Repeat offenders pay $279.

“Distracted driving is a serious traffic safety concern that puts everyone on the road at risk,” Gilmore said in a written statement. “Several drivers who were contacted remarked that they had seen the public information campaign prior to their traffic stop and subsequent citation.”

Distracted Driving Statistics

According to the state Office of Traffic Safety (OTS), drivers who use hand-held devices are four times more likely to get into accidents and injure themselves. The state safety agency outlined these basic facts about distracted driving:

• 80 percent of vehicle crashes involve some sort of driver inattention.
• Up to 6000 people nationwide are killed in crashes where driver distractions are involved.
• Talking on a cell phone or texting is the number one source of driver distractions.
• Texting takes your eyes off the road for an average of five seconds, far enough to travel the length of a football field at 55 mph.  Most crashes happen with less than 3 seconds reaction time.
• The act of talking on a cell phone, even hands free, can give you “inattention blindness,” where your brain isn’t seeing what’s right in front of you.  You aren’t even aware that you are driving impaired.

In a statewide OTS survey, almost 46 percent of California drivers admitted to making driving mistakes while talking on a cell phone. More than 60 percent said that they had been hit or nearly hit by other drivers who were talking or texting. (Source: NBC San Diego)

California Car Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented car accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

The Motion Picture & Television Hospital was one of three nursing homes fined over poor care that led to patient deaths. (Photo: Los Angeles Times)

Nursing home negligence: The state fined three Los Angeles County nursing homes as much as $80,000 apiece Tuesday after concluding that inadequate care led to patient deaths at the facilities.

•   The California Department of Public Health issued severe citations and heavy fines to three Los Angeles County nursing homes for poor care that led to patient’s deaths.

•   One of the patients died after falling down the same stairwell two weeks in a row.  

•   Another patient died after going into a diabetic coma after staff failed to monitor her blood glucose levels.

 •   A third patient who was known to be a fall risk died from a severe brain injury after falling out of his bed.  

The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) issued Class AA citations to each of three facilities, according to a report in the Los Angeles Daily News. The Class AA citation is the most severe penalty allowed under state law.

The Motion Picture & Television Hospital in Woodland Hills, Fountain View Subacute and Nursing Center in Los Angeles, and Downey Care Center in Downey all were cited and fined for poor care that led to the death of patients.

Investigators said the Motion Picture & Television Hospital failed to ensure a hazard-free environment and provide adequate supervision for a  a 90-year-old Alzheimer’s patient who died after she fell out of her wheelchair and down a stairwell in 2010. She had fallen down those same stairs a week earlier, CDHP officials said.  The facility was cited and fined $80,000.

The CDPH determined that Downey Care Center failed to monitor a patient’s blood glucose level after she was released from a hospital in 2010, according to the Los Angeles Times. The patient went into a diabetic coma and died. The facility was cited and fined $80,000.

CDHP officials said the Fountain View Subacute and Nursing Center failed to provide adequate supervision and proper care to an elderly patient who was known to be a high risk for falls.  The patient fell out of his bed and suffered a fatal brain injury in 2010. When facility staff found the patient on the floor, no one knew how long he had been there, CDHP investigators said. The facility was cited and fined $75,000.

The CDHP said the citations and fines are part of an enforcement process designed to improve the quality of care at the 1,300 skilled nursing facilities throughout the state.

Los Angeles Nursing Home Abuse and Negligence Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented nursing home abuse and negligence victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

Six developmentally disabled students were injured in a school bus accident in Fullerton.

School bus accident: Six La Sierra High School students were injured Thursday after a pickup truck slammed into their school bus in Fullerton.

•   A school bus carrying developmentally disabled students was turning left when it was hit by a pickup truck in an intersection.

•   Six of the students aboard the bus suffered minor to moderate injuries and were taken to hospitals to be treated.

•   Neither driver was injured.

The accident occurred near the intersection of State College Boulevard and Dorothy Lane at about 2 p.m., according to a CBS News report.

Fullerton police Sgt. Andrew Goodrich said the school bus,  which belonged to the Fullerton Joint Union High School District, was traveling northbound on State College Boulevard when the accident occurred.

When the bus attempted to make a left turn onto Dorothy Lane, it was struck by a pickup truck that was traveling south on State College Boulevard.

The students — who are developmentally disabled and range in age from 16 to 22 years old — were taken off of the bus. Six of them were taken to hospitals to be treated. Five of them suffered relatively minor injuries, while another suffered minor-to-moderate injuries, Goodrich told NBC News.

Both drivers declined medical treatment.

The California Highway Patrol is investigating the accident, as is standard protocol when a school bus is involved.

School Bus Accident Statistics

School buses are by far the safest way to get to school,  National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) spokesman Eric Bolton told WebMD.

“The safety record of school transportation is just about untouched by any other mode,” Bolton said.

School buses carry 24 million students and travel more than 4 billion miles each year. Considering that, school bus fatalities are extremely rare — 0.2 deaths per 100 million miles traveled. The rate of deaths in automobiles is eight times higher.

But statistics and percentages don’t tell the whole story, especially to the parents of the 149 school-age children who were killed in school bus accidents between 1998 and 2008 [source: School Transportation-Related Crashes | NHTSA | 2008].

Over two-thirds (69 percent) of those children were killed by school buses. Seven percent were killed by vehicles functioning as school buses, and 24 percent by other vehicles involved in the crashes. About one-half (47 percent) of all school-age pedestrians killed in school transportation-related crashes were between the ages of 5 and 7.

Fullerton School Bus Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented motor vehicle accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

An elderly driver crashed into Las Palmas Cafe in Carson, injuring a diner.

An elderly man who took his wife out to lunch on Valentine’s Day crashed his car into a cafe in Carson and injured a diner inside.

•   An 89-year-old man wanted to take his wife to lunch for Valentine’s Day.

•   When he turned into the parking lot, his tires hit a curb. He tried to slam on his brakes but hit the gas pedal instead.

•  The car raced through the lot and crashed through the building, into the cafe.

•  One customer was injured.

The accident occurred at 11:35 a.m. at the Las Palmas Cafe, according to a report in the Daily Breeze.

Carson sheriff’s Deputy Geoff Lidman said the 89-year-old man, whose identity was not released, was driving a 2003 Ford Focus southbound on Avalon Boulevard just before the crash.

He turned west onto Lincoln Street, where he intended to enter the restaurant parking lot. He missed the driveway and the car struck the curb. The man apparently tried to slam on his brakes, but accidentally hit the gas pedal instead.

His car sped through the parking lot and plowed right through the front of the building and into the cafe. One of the customers was launched 15 feet into the air, according to sheriff’s deputies and restaurant owner Sonia Fuentes. The injured customer was taken to a hospital to be evaluated after complaining of pain to her legs.

A server who had just taken the customer’s order when the car came crashing into the cafe was distraught after the accident.  Fuentes said the server was frightened and in shock, but would be fine.

The elderly driver was not injured.

County health department officials and city building inspectors responded to the scene to check the building’s structure for safety issues. Southern California Edison and The Gas Co. also inspected the building.

After authorities left, Fuentes and her employees cleaned up the mess and continued to serve Valentine’s Day meals, despite the new hole in the wall. Fuentes said she felt sorry for the elderly driver. She said her told her, “I wanted to take my wife to a Valentine’s lunch, one that she would never forget.”

It’s a good bet that she won’t forget this one.

Carson Car Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented car accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

Hit-and-run bicycle accident: Police have arrested a driver who hit a 13-year-old girl and left her lying on a Santa Ana street.

Felony hit-and-run: A 65-year-old Fountain Valley man was arrested Tuesday after he struck a 13-year-old girl on her bicycle in Santa Ana last week and fled the scene.

•   A sixth-grade girl was riding her bicycle in a crosswalk when she was hit by a car and severely  injured.

•   The driver fled the scene, but came forward a week later and was booked on felony hit-and-run charges.

•   The victim, who was initially in critical condition but is now home recovering, said she forgives the man who hit her. 

The bicycle accident occurred  at about 7 p.m. on February 6 according to an NBC News report.

Santa Ana police said 13-year-old Teresa Pham was riding her bicycle northbound on Greenville Street when she attempted to cross Warner Avenue  in a crosswalk. A car that was driving westbound on Warner Avenue struck Pham and fled the scene.

“The driver fled the scene, making no attempt to stop or check on the condition of the injured girl,” said Santa Ana Police Cpl. Anthony Bertagna told the Los Angeles Times.

Several motorists stopped to try to help the teen as she lay in the street in extreme pain. Pham suffered major injuries, including a broken leg, multiple fractures, internal injuries, and severe injuries to her face. She was hospitalized in critical condition.

Bertagna later said the the suspect, Arif Abdul Sattar, reportedly returned home and told his family that he had been involved in a collision. After his family saw an ABC News report about the accident, they urged him to surrender to police.

“The family was advised by the suspect that he was possibly in an accident. They saw the story and got an attorney and came forward,” Bertagna said.”Through negotiating with the attorney, the suspect in this case has surrendered himself as well as the vehicle as being involved in this accident.”

Sattar was booked on felony hit and run charges and was released on bail Wednesday, Bartagna said. The little girl he injured said she forgives him.

“Maybe he has a family,” Pham said. “I don’t really know what’s happening in his life, but maybe he’s dealing with stuff,” she said.

When asked what she would say to Sattar if she had a chance, the sixth-grader said, “I would say, ‘God bless you.’”

Santa Ana Bicycle Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented bicycle accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.