A 43-year-old Valencia woman who was seriously injured when she crashed a pickup truck into a tractor truck in Lincoln Heights remains hospitalized.
The woman, who has not been identified, led California Highway Patrol officers on a chase that began in Oxnard and ended after she crashed into the back of a 2021 Peterbuilt semi at around 7 p.m Tuesday. She was taken to Los Angeles County USC Medical Center after the crash with blunt force trauma injuries, according to the CHP.
CHP officers received a call at around 5:41 p.m. Tuesday about a possible DUI suspect driving a 2021 GMC Denali pickup truck erratically and when they attempted to stop the suspect the woman increased her speed and led officers into Los Angeles County at high speeds, driving through Mission Hills, Burbank and Glendale on the southbound Golden State (5) Freeway, authorities said.
According to a CHP report, as the woman was driving on the 5 Freeway just south of Broadway, for unknown reasons she veered from the number one lane into the number three lane and collided into the rear of the semi-truck, and then crashed into the concrete center divider.
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Officers approached the Denali after the crash and broke the truck's passenger window in order to assist her. After they initiated CPR measures, paramedics from the Los Angeles Fire Department responded and continued lifesaving measures before the woman was taken to the hospital.
The Golden State Freeway was closed on both sides in the vicinity of the crash until just before 1 a.m. while authorities investigated the crash.
The driver of the Peterbuilt, Rodolfo Perez of Rosemead, 36, was not injured, according to the CHP report.
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CHP said the crash and the events that preceded it are under investigation.
