Motorcyclist killed in Rancho Cucamonga crash with tractor trailer on 15 Freeway

Last Updated on February 11, 2020 by CCAR Staff

A semi-truck veered into the lane of a motorcyclist on the 15 Freeway in Rancho Cucamonga late Monday, with the collision leaving the biker dead, the California Highway Patrol said.

A 33-year-old Fontana man was headed south on a 2011 Suzuki motorcycle when a hitched and loaded truck to his right at about 11:32 p.m. turned left ahead of him and crashed into the center divider, the CHP said.

The motorcycle slammed into the truck’s trailer and became lodged beneath it. His identity was not immediately released in the CHP’s release.

The driver hauling the trailer suffered minor injuries and declined treatment, the CHP said.

CHP officials did not immediately find evidence suggesting that alcohol, drugs or distracted driving were factors in the crash, and no arrests had been made in connection with it as of Tuesday afternoon, Officer Jesus Garcia said.

He added that high winds are common in the area, and investigators were looking into the possibility that the high-profile truck might have been buffeted by a powerful gust prior to traveling into the motorcyclist’s lane.

About 75 gallons of diesel spilled from the trailer into a storm drain in the freeway median, the CHP said, with Caltrans notified for a cleanup.