A North Hills woman died Monday in a three-vehicle pileup on the northbound San Diego (405) Freeway. The crash involved her pickup and a patrol unit occupied by two on-duty sheriff's deputies.
Lisa Hylla, 25, died at the scene of the accident, which occurred near Devonshire Street about 2:20 a.m., the coroner's office reported.
Hylla was driving a 2007 Toyota Scion that was involved in an injury- collision with a 1984 Toyota pickup truck driven by a 64-year-old Richmond man whose passenger was a 63-year-old Richmond woman, the California Highway Patrol reported. The disabled pickup truck, which was in the number one lane, was apparently then struck by a sheriff's patrol car -- a 2009 Ford Crown Victoria occupied by two male deputies that was northbound in the number one lane, the CHP reported.
Hylla was thrown into the southbound lanes of traffic, according to the CHP. It was unclear if Hylla got out of her car at some point, or if she was ejected from the vehicle, said CHP Officer Leland Tang of the West Valley Area office.
"At this time it has not been determined whether this incident is one sequence of events, indicating one collision, or two separate events indicating more than one collision. Also at this time, the impact which forced the driver of the 2007 Toyota into the southbound lanes of traffic has not been determined," a CHP statement said.
Hylla was not hit by any other vehicles on the southbound side of the freeway, Tang said.
The freeway was closed for several hours to accommodate the investigation, but all lanes were reopened by about 9:15 a.m., CHP Officer Krystal Carter said.
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Los Angeles firefighters reported three males and a female were taken to hospitals. The occupants of the pickup truck suffered "moderate" injuries, and the deputies suffered minor injuries, the CHP reported.
The deputies were on duty and assigned to a specialized unit based at the sheriff's Lennox Station, said Sgt. John Kepley of the Sheriff's Headquarters Bureau. They were in a marked patrol car, Kepley said.