Overturned into deep ravine, SR-60 big-rig wreck causes major delays
BEAUMONT — A tractor-trailer combo that left the roadway and overturned near the Badlands caused major traffic delays for morning commuters and other motorists Tuesday morning, Mar. 5. It was not immediately known if the big-rig driver or his passenger was injured in the solo-vehicle accident, which caused the 60 Freeway to be partially closed for several hours, according to a CHP incident log.
LEADING THE RCNS HEADLINES:
Enjoy a good laugh with Murrieta PD’s Weekly Roundup 2/28
CHP, Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire, and other emergency personnel, were first alerted to the crash shortly before 9 a.m., after witnesses reported that a big-rig had rolled down an embankment along the eastbound side of SR-60, west of Western Knolls Ave., where the freeway comes out of the Badlands and connects with Interstate 10.
When officials arrived at the scene they found a tractor-trailer combo that had left the roadway and went down a steep embankment. The vehicle came to rest in a 20 to 30-foot-deep ravine, with the big-rig ending up on its side and its trailer flipped upside down.
The truck’s driver and another man had managed to self-extricate from the overturned truck before officials arrived and both were later seen up and walking around while being interviewed by CHP. An ambulance crew that was summoned to the scene evaluated both occupants from the truck and reports from the scene indicate both declined further treatment.
During their crash investigation, CHP called for the temporary closure of parts of the freeway while a wrecker worked to pull the heavily damaged truck from the ravine and back up the Pass area embankment. The truck, which is registered to JEC Transport out of San Bernardino, was later towed from the scene.
CHP is investigating the cause of the crash and their investigation is ongoing.
Click any image to open full-size gallery.
EN3 News photos
Contact the writer: [email protected]
Trevor Montgomery, 47, moved last year to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, The Valley Chronicle, and Anza Valley Outlook; as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County and Mountain Echo in Shasta County.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 28 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 15 – but soon to be 16 – grandchildren.