A wrong-way driver in a van crashed into a big rig and two other vehicles on the 405 Freeway in West Los Angeles at the end of a chaotic police pursuit that began early Friday in Venice.
The pursuit started after officers responded to a disturbance call in Venice. A woman at that scene backed a white van into officers, leaving one hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries.
After striking the patrol cars, the van driver then sped away and went the wrong way on the northbound 405 Freeway. The van was traveling a high speed when the driver slammed head-on into three vehicles, including a big rig, stopped for what appeared to be a traffic break near Wilshire Boulevard.
Telemundo52 spoke with several drivers involved in the crash, who said they were not seriously injured. Some said they were driving to work when they saw the white van crash before the driver climbed out and onto the roof of the vehicle and hood of the big rig.
“Nobody knew what was going on until we got hit,” a driver who was heading to work in Santa Clarita told NBCLA. “It happened so fast.”
**Traffic Alert**
A police pursuit ended in a multi vehicle crash. Several lanes closed on NB 405 near Wilshire Blvd. WATCH LIVE: https://t.co/AezjUKJtJK pic.twitter.com/v4hJgxjANJ— Robin Winston (@RobinWinstonTV) May 17, 2024
The chase driver was taken into custody at the scene.
Northbound 405 Freeway lanes were closed for several hours in the West Los Angeles area.
Traffic backed up on both sides of the usually busy freeway during the morning drive. The southbound side was jammed into Sherman Oaks, about 10 miles away in the San Fernando Valley, causing significant delays for anyone traveling to Los Angeles International Airport.
Source: NBC Los Angeles