Driver injured after cement mixer overturns on I-215

PERRIS — A truck driver was left trapped and injured after the cement mixer he was driving overturned on the southbound 215 Freeway, north of the Harley Knox off ramp, early this morning, Friday, May 24. The driver was eventually extricated from the wrecked big-rig and hospitalized with moderate injuries, according to CHP and Cal Fire officials.

This morning’s accident created a traffic nightmare for morning commuters and other motorists who reportedly spent up to an hour or more stuck in heavy traffic caused by the crash and its response.

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CHP, Cal Fire Riverside County Fire Department, and AMR were dispatched to the scene around 6:41 a.m., after receiving reports of a rollover accident involving a cement mixer truck. 911 callers reported the big-rig had overturned and come to rest on its side and was blocking the freeway’s number two and three lanes of traffic.

When officials began arriving at the scene they found spillage and debris from the overturned Alpha Materials big-rig, leaving only one lane of travel open. Fire and rescue personnel quickly determined the driver was injured and trapped inside the truck’s cab and would need to be physically extricated from the vehicle.

Based on the road blockage and unknown time frame to clear the overturned cement mixer, CHP issued a SigAlert for the area shortly before 7 a.m.

Due to fuel and other liquids that had spilled from the wrecked big-rig onto the freeway, HazMat and Environmental Health officials were summoned and responded to the crash.

The SigAlert and lane closures remained in effect for several hours, until the overturned mixer was righted back onto its wheels and towed from the scene.

CHP’s investigation into the cause of the crash is ongoing and no further details have been released.

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.

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