Early Morning Crash Causes Traffic Headaches

A semitrailer crashed into the center divider and overturned on the Long Beach Freeway today, causing no injuries but resulting in major traffic headaches for early morning commuters.

The big rig, which was empty, was cut off by a passenger vehicle at Del Amo Boulevard around 1:55 a.m. while traveling southbound on the 710, causing the driver to lose control near the boundary dividing Long Beach from unincorporated Rancho Dominguez, said California Highway Patrol Officer Patrick Kimball.

The semitrailer slammed into the center divider and turned onto its side, sending debris into lanes on both sides of the freeway and closing all lanes in both directions, Kimball said.

By 5 a.m., all but one lane on the northbound side had reopened, but the southbound lanes remained closed as crews worked to remove the big rig, Kimball said.

Southbound traffic was allowed to pass on the shoulder until 6:25 a.m., when all southbound lanes were reopened, the CHP reported.

No one was injured in the crash, although the big rig driver was temporarily trapped in the cab of his tractor, Kimball said.