Acid cleanup causes traffic backup

Lolita Harper

Traffic on the northbound San Diego Freeway, already sluggish from

the unexpected showers, grinded to a halt Saturday afternoon when a

pickup truck slammed into the center divider.

Around 1 p.m., two pickup trucks collided, sending one into the

median, a California Highway Patrol dispatchers said. A SigAlert was

issued for 30 minutes and the carpool lane was completely blocked

off.

Costa Mesa Fire Department sent two engines, a truck and Battalion

Chief Chris Riley to the scene, officials said. Riley said the

injuries, thankfully, were minor and each of the four patients were

transferred to area hospitals.

“I was only on the scene for about 30 seconds before they canceled

me,” Riley said.

While the accident itself was minor -- not warranting a press

release from highway patrol officials, who were having a very busy

day because of the rain -- the effect of the cleanup was significant.

One of the trucks had been carrying a gallon of sulfuric acid,

Riley said, and Caltrans’ hazardous materials team was called out to

take care of the spill. It was only a slight amount, but the extra

vehicles on scene contributed to the slowing of traffic.

Cars were backed up as far as the eye could see on the northbound

side of the San Diego Freeway, as fire and hazmat officials worked to

clear the wreckage. The bright red and yellow of the safety

officials’ vehicles provided a stark contrast to the gray, rainy

clouds looming overhead.

“Hopefully, we won’t get any more accidents but with this weird

rain, I can imagine we will,” Riley said.

Slick conditions on the road should subside, said forecaster

Miguel Miller of the National Weather Service based in San Diego.

“I think your rain is done,” he said.

Newport Beach logged about one-sixth of an inch of rain during

Saturday’s late-season storm that came in off the Pacific Ocean,

Miller said. Today, people can expect partly cloudy skies with

temperatures from the mid-60s at the beach, to as high as 73 degrees

inland.

* LOLITA HARPER is the Forum editor. She also writes columns

Wednesdays and Fridays. She may be reached at (949) 574-4275 or by

e-mail at lolita.harper@latimes.com.