Residents call for safety on Nyes Place

Mike Swanson

A cement truck carrying nearly a full load lost control and hit four

houses on Nyes Place on Nov. 14, prompting several residents of the

neighborhood to ask the City Council on Tuesday to prevent its

happening again.

The truck, driven by 30-year-old Daniel Escamilla of Tustin and

carrying eight yards of wet cement, hit 370 Nyes Place at 4:19 p.m.

after losing control coming down the hill, then fell on its side and

hit three more houses, Officer Tony White said.

“The driver had come down the road about two or three months back,

but his truck was empty, and he didn’t properly account for how much

weight he was carrying this time,” White said. “It’s a weird street

to negotiate even in a regular automobile.”

Charles Michael Murray, who lives at 370 Nyes Place, called the

street a war zone considering its grade and speed limit, especially

when a truck weighing 40 tons is involved.

He said his family has asked the City Council and the Parking,

Traffic and Circulation Committee to do something on several

occasions to prevent accidents he thinks are sure to happen given the

street’s current condition.

“Our homes have ended up being the escape ramp,” Murray said.

“It’s just too steep. It was wrongly designed.”

Murray also asked that the city impose a six-ton limit for

vehicles on Nyes Place, which he said he’s asked for before with no

success.

“This situation is just beyond belief,” Murray said. “I can’t

believe we’re here again.”

Another truck lost control coming down Nyes Place on Wednesday

carrying a full load of rocks, Sgt. Jason Kravetz said. The driver,

28-year-old Christopher Lanning of Fontana, was able to drive the

truck into the hillside before it reached any houses.

Both trucks were being used on a street resurfacing project in

Arch Beach Heights, which will continue through December.

Lanning and a passenger were taken to Mission Hospital with minor

injuries, but no residents were hurt. Some trees were damaged,

Kravetz said, and Nyes Place was closed for about an hour.

Wet cement spilled all over the street Nov. 14 and the truck hit a

gas line at 364 Nyes Place, causing a leak, White said. The street

was closed until about 9 p.m. before it could be cleaned and the

truck removed. Escamilla was taken to Mission Hospital with a cut on

his head, an injured arm and lower back pain, White said. No

residents were injured.

Andrew Hollinshead said he and his son were in their home at 255

Nyes Place when the accident occurred, just as they were four years

ago when a similar accident happened. His house wasn’t one of the

four that was damaged.

“Sooner or later, there are going to be people missing, and it’s

going to be because of the city’s lack of diligence in solving the

problem,” Hollinshead said.

Councilman Wayne Baglin said the city needed to address interim

and long-term solutions to a problem he said was condemning the

neighborhood’s houses.

“This issue does not belong at [the Parking, Traffic and

Circulation Committee] any longer,” Baglin said. “It belongs with

City Council.”

Escamilla received a speeding ticket for traveling at an unsafe

speed considering the conditions, White said.

“I’m sorry for your frightening experience,” Mayor Toni Iseman

told the Nyes Place residents.