Caltrans contract worker killed after box truck slams into crew off 71 Freeway in Chino Hills

CHINO HILLS, Calif. (KABC) -- A Caltrans contract worker doing cleanup near the 71 Freeway in Chino Hills was killed after being struck by a box truck that lost control and careened off the side of the freeway.

The worker was part of a crew of about a dozen workers contracted by Caltrans to do cleanup along the embankment below the 71 Freeway as part of the governor's Clean California initiative.

The incident happened off the northbound lanes at around 8:30 a.m. Monday just past Euclid Avenue. For an unknown reason, a driver in a white box truck sideswiped and crashed into the vehicle that those workers had arrived in.

The workers' vehicle was parked on the shoulder while the crewmembers were down the embankment doing their cleanup work.

The white box truck lost control, went down the hill and crashed into two workers, killing one of them. The second worker was injured. CHP officials mistakenly told Eyewitness News on Monday that the second worker had died. They corrected their mistake Tuesday morning, confirming that the second worker suffered major injuries but is expected to survive.

Caltrans told Eyewitness News that the workers in the crew were likely transitioning out of probation or incarceration.

The California Highway Patrol shut down at least two lanes of the northbound 71 Freeway to investigate the incident. Northbound traffic was backed up for at least a mile, and lanes remained closed for hours.

CHP officials said the box truck driver is cooperating with their investigation. Following an evaluation, authorities said they've ruled out drugs and alcohol to be a factor in the incident. The cause of the initial sideswipe crash remains under investigation.

The deadly crash is an unfortunate and tragic example of how dangerous it can be to work alongside a freeway.

"Working on the side of the freeway is dangerous, and that includes those who break down. We always ask that you exit the freeway. There's so many variables - people can be distracted, fatigued, impaired, and people just lose control of their vehicles, which causes us to be at a greater risk," said CHP Officer Rodrigo Jimenez.

CHP said drivers need to slow down, especially when there are people on the shoulder or the side of the freeway.

"There's a law that requires motorists when they're traveling through, if there is a construction vehicle or an emergency vehicle parked on the shoulder, you're required to move over a lane, and if you're not able to do that, at least slow down," Jimenez said.