A Montclair man was killed when his car crashed head-on with a tree in Rowland Heights early Tuesday morning, Feb. 9.
California Highway Patrol Officer Marcos Iniguez identified the driver as 21-year-old Luis Antonio Sanchez. It looked like he wasn’t wearing a seatbelt, Iniguez said.
The fatal crash happened at 3:14 a.m.
A 2004 Nissan Altima was heading east on Colima Road, west of Fairway Drive, at a high rate of speed when it traveled onto the sidewalk and struck a tree, Iniguez said.
He said the car bounced back and ended up on the No. 3 lane. Paramedics pronounced the driver, Sanchez, dead at the scene, Iniguez said.
A motorcyclist died Sunday when his motorcycle and a pickup truck collided on Highway 39 in the Angeles National Forest.
The coroner’s office identified the rider as Javier Barragan, 25, of Los Angeles. The fatal crash near mile marker 23.11 happened at 7:22 a.m. on Sunday.
A Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R was speeding south on Highway 39 when it crossed into the northbound lane and collided with a Toyota Tacoma, according to California Highway Patrol Officer R. Gonzalez in a statement. He said the rider was thrown from the motorcycle.
A CHP officer patrolling Highway 39 came upon the crash and called for medical aid, Gonzalez said.
The motorcyclist died at the scene while the driver of the pickup, a 38-year-old Van Nuys man, was not injured, CHP spokesman Officer Rodrigo Jimenez said.
The CHP issued a SigAlert. The collision shut down Highway 39 for about three hours.
A former El Monte detective started serving a 90-day sentence in county jail this week for a 2016 hit-and-run in La Verne in which two people were injured.
Eric Johnston, 44, was also sentenced on Tuesday to three years probation and 60 days of Caltrans service, according to Greg Risling, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
In addition, court records show, the judge ordered Johnston to complete a three-month first-offender alcohol and other-drug education and counseling program.
His attorney couldn’t be reached for comment on Thursday.
Although he was sentenced to 90 days in county jail, the sheriff’s booking system shows a projected release date of July 31.
Johnston took a deal and pleaded no contest on March 2 to one count of felony hit-and-run driving resulting in injury, and one count of felony insurance fraud.
“We have nothing to do with him,” El Monte Police Chief Dave Reynoso said, adding that Johnston resigned from the Police Department on March 5.
Johnston had been on unpaid administrative leave before he quit. He had worked at the El Monte Police Department for more than 15 years, Reynoso said.
Off-duty, Johnston was driving a Camry when he crashed into a car at Bonita and Damien avenues in La Verne on March 15, 2016. He fled. The Rancho Cucamonga couple in the car he hit ended up in a hospital.
About a year after the crash, La Verne police received an anonymous letter, with information about the case, asking them to look into the hit-and-run.
Although Johnson had sold the Camry, police found the car and identified he was the owner at the time of the hit-and-run. The DA’s Office filed charges against Johnston in 2019.
Many transit agencies in Southern California are seeing the number of novel coronavirus cases among employees creep upward, heightening anxiety among bus operators and their families that they could be exposed.
In Riverside County, where a bus driver contracted COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, and another is being tested, a driver is concerned that not enough is being done to protect these frontline workers.
A 60-year-old grandmother and driver for Empire Transportation Inc., a subcontractor for Riverside Transit Authority, said in an interview on Wednesday, April 8, that she and others were supposed to be allowed to opt-out of work. But the driver said she was told she would have to work, even after routes were reduced.
She decided to leave her job without any paid time off, despite the fact that she has a mortgage and car payments. She said the company indicated it would not be supportive of her unemployment claim, saying she refused work.
In an interview from her home Wednesday, she said she left a job she loved for 15 years to protect herself from exposure to the virus from passengers who cough and sneeze as they walk on and off the bus through the front door.
“My life is worth it. If I have to find another job I will. I want to be around to see my grandkids grow up,” said the veteran bus driver who operated a route in Hemet. She asked that her name not be used out of concern she would face retaliation on her unemployment claim or not get her old job back once the pandemic is over.
Opting out of work for older drivers deemed more vulnerable to the virus is done on a case-by-case decision between the driver and his or her supervisor at Empire, said Brad Weaver, a spokesman for RTA.
Any driver at or over 65 years of age working directly for RTA has the option of not working and that is the same for its contractors, he said. RTA has 20 drivers over age 65. He wasn’t sure how many have taken the paid time off.
As of Tuesday, all RTA passengers must wear a mask, Weaver said. “If they do not have a mask on we won’t permit them to ride,” he said. Los Angeles County’s transit agency issued the same decree.
Not all drivers have masks, however, as they are still in short supply, Weaver said. Yet, the RTA is requiring all drivers to wear face coverings. Drivers also have been given disinfectant wipes, and all passengers must board through the rear doors of the large buses to keep a safe distance from the driver, Weaver said.
For smaller buses like the one operated by the Empire driver in Hemet, there is no rear door for passengers to use. She said there is essentially no way to keep social distancing on these vehicles and recommends the service be shut down.
Weaver said the driver of the smaller buses now have permission to step out of the bus before passengers get on board.
Concern for bus drivers heightened when 50-year-old bus driver Jason Hargrove from Detroit complained in a viral video about a passenger who coughed on him without covering her mouth. After saying in the video “he felt violated,” he emphasized the virus was a real danger to him and fellow bus drivers. He died 11 days later of complications from COVID-19, the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) announced on April 2.
The video raised concerns among the nation’s transit workers. Some smaller agencies in the South Bay have canceled all service, saying people should just stay home, while most continue on reduced schedules. Montebello Transit suspended all bus service as of April 6, switching to Dial-A-Ride vans on a limited basis. Carson’s buses were taken off the street on March 28.
RTA is operating on a Sunday schedule, and ridership is down by about 65%, Weaver said.
He said the agency is doing everything it can to protect bus drivers from exposure. “We know that this is a high-risk group and these drivers are family to us. We want them to be safe,” he said.
A lone traveler on the Metro Red Line subway in downtown LA Thursday, March 26, 2020. On April 7, LA Metro recommended all transit riders wear masks. As part of the city’s “Safer at Home” program, all venues and dine-in restaurants and unnecessary businesses have been closed leaving very few commuters or travelers. For most people, the new coronavirus (COVID-19) causes only mild or moderate symptoms. For some, it can cause more severe illness.(Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Across the nation, 16 members of the ATU have died from the virus, said Art Aguilar, president of the ATU in Los Angeles. His union represents bus operators and maintenance workers at Riverside Transit, Long Beach Transit and Sunline Transit in Palm Springs, and maintenance workers at the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
“It has taken some time to get the agencies on board to make sure their operators are taken care of,” Aguilar said on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, the LACMTA issued an advisory recommending all transit riders wear face coverings or masks on all its buses and trains.
LA Metro is working on getting masks to bus drivers. “We have just received a large order of PPE supplies and are distributing them to our frontline employees. This includes bus operators,” Dave Sotero, LA Metro spokesman, said in an email Tuesday.
LA Metro has seen an increase in COVID-19 cases in the past week, according to information on its website. As of Tuesday, the latest figures available, LA Metro reported 19 confirmed cases. Of those, 12 were employees, six were contractors and one was a vendor. This is up from 14 cases reported on April 1.
Seven LA Metro bus operators have confirmed cases of COVID-19, said Sotero.
Aguilar said RTA is doing a good job getting protective equipment to drivers. But he called LA Metro “reactive, not pro-active.” He added: “I would give every transit agency an ‘F’ for failing: They have not done their part to be ready.”
Aguilar agreed with LA Metro, however, that the buses and trains should keep rolling especially because they serve essential workers.
“We are advising riders that our public transit system is for essential activities only,” Sotero wrote. “Metro is still carrying 300,000 people per day. That’s how many people rely on our service.”
Here’s how these other transit agencies are trying to prevent the spread of the virus on buses:
Omnitrans
The San Bernardino County transit agency is issuing gloves, masks and sanitizers to bus drivers, a process that should be complete by the end of the week, said spokesperson Nicole Ramos.
While no Omnitrans employees have tested positive for COVID-19, one driver of an ACCESS vehicle for disabled passengers who works for subcontractor MV Transportation has tested positive after being exposed outside of work, Ramos said.
The agency learned of the positive test on Friday and has contacted employees and customers with whom the operator had been in contact. The operator is seeking treatment but has not been hospitalized, she said.
Omnitrans has 450 bus operators. Its ridership is down 65% and it will be reducing service further on Monday, April 13, she said.
Foothill Transit
The agency that operates in the San Gabriel Valley, Los Angeles and western San Bernardino County received 1,000 masks from BYD, the maker of its new electric buses, said spokesperson Felicia Friesema on Wednesday. Three employees from its Pomona yard were tested for COVID-19: one came back negative and two are pending, she said.
“This is the one time you’ll hear me say fewer people on board is a good thing. We are encouraging people to stay home and only ride if you are out for essential work,” she said. Rear-door boarding has been in effect for more than a week and fares are not being collected. Ridership is down about 75%, she said.
The agency has 40% of its bus service available, most on a Sunday bus schedule seven days a week. The agency is requiring bus drivers 65 years or older or those with underlying health issues to go on leave, the agency reported. Passengers must board buses through the rear doors and only those passengers who need to use the bus-boarding ramp should use the front door, OCTA spokesman Eric Carpenter said in an email.
The agency promotes social distancing on the bus and requires rear-door boarding except for those who need extra assistance. Also, all bus operators have been given gloves and the drivers’ union has provided masks to operators, said Michael Gold, spokesman. No cases of COVID-19 have been reported, he said. Buses operate on a reduced schedule, from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Staff writer Jeong Park contributed to this story.
For many transit agencies in Southern California, a free ride translates into a safer ride during the new coronavirus pandemic.
What does one have to do with the other? It has to do with keeping your distance.
Since fare boxes are always at the front of the bus next to the driver, requiring riders to deposit money or tap the electronic pad with a pass violates social distancing guidelines the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and county health agencies have issued to slow the spread of the coronavirus, which causes COVID-19.
Hence, many bus agencies are temporarily eliminating fares or not enforcing whether someone “taps” or pays — all in an effort to keep bus riders farther away from bus operators.
“We are not enforcing fare collection. We are trying to maintain social distancing for the bus operators,” said Felicia Friesema, spokesperson for Foothill Transit, which serves 13 million people a year in the San Gabriel Valley, Los Angeles and parts of the San Bernardino Valley.
This avoidance of the bus operator is made possible by requiring every bus rider to enter and exit the bus through the rear door, where there are no fare boxes. By going to rear-door boarding, it makes reaching up to the front to pay impractical, if not impossible.
Those in a wheelchair who must activate the lift can enter through the front doors, she said.
The third-largest transit agency in the country, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, known as LA Metro, also this week began mandating rear-door boarding for all bus riders.
However, LA Metro has not said passengers can get rides free, even though some advocacy groups say the policy represents a de-facto free ride.
“While riders are not expected to use the fare box or tap validator at the front of the bus, they should have a loaded TAP card,” LA Metro spokesman Dave Sotero said in an emailed response on Thursday, March 26.
Riders using the LA Metro subways and light-rail system are required to pay their fare at the turnstile, as per usual.
Move LA, a transit advocacy group, emailed out a petition Tuesday demanding that LA Metro suspend fare collection for the duration of the stay-at-home order to flatten the curve of COVID-19 in Los Angeles County. Transit agencies in Seattle, New York City, Alameda County and the Los Angeles Department of Transportation are no longer requiring fares, the group said.
Among those not enforcing fare collection in the region are: the Santa Monica Big Blue Bus, Antelope Valley Transit Authority and Omnitrans in San Bernardino County.
All require bus patrons to enter and exit through the rear doors. At Omnitrans, which provides 10 million passenger trips a year in San Bernardino Valley, the fare suspension continues through April 19, said Nicole Ramos, spokesperson.
On Thursday, Move LA was reconsidering its petition drive. “We are satisfied with the policy (LA Metro) has put in place. It is de-facto free,” said Eli Lipman, director of programming and development for Move LA.
Lipman said to force the agency into no fare collection as a policy may encourage discretionary riding, such as people boarding buses and trains to trails and beaches. The crowds at beaches and mountain trails last weekend caused the state to close all park parking lots and many agencies to close off trails.
Move LA wants to keep the trains and buses running so that grocery and hospital workers and employees at restaurants serving take-out and delivery can continue to use the system. Often, these are low-income workers who are mass-transit dependent.
Although paying may add to their burden, Move LA said Metro is correct in striking a balance that keeps the trains and buses safe to ride.
“Metro has adopted an approach requiring people to enter the bus from the rear door,” said Denny Zane, Move LA executive director on Wednesday. “In a practical matter, that has made (bus) transit free.”
Metro, Omnitrans and Foothill Transit has seen bus and train ridership drop by 60% in the past week and have begun cutting bus service. Riverside Transit Agency, meanwhile, updated its rider alerts web page to report large cutbacks in service.
Long Beach Transit began rear-door boarding on all buses on Wednesday, March 25. Buses are on a reduced schedule, operating from 6 am. to 9 p.m.
Sarah Chester was “the one that everybody counted on.” Her daughter Payton was “the gentlest person you would ever meet.”
La Serna High football coach Andy George described his sister and 13-year-old niece, who were among the nine people from Orange County who died Sunday in the helicopter crash in Calabasas that killed Lakers legend Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna.
George, who just a couple months ago led his team to the CIF Southern Section Division 6 championship game and was named the Whittier Daily News coach of the year, discussed the heartbreak his family experienced.
George is two years older than his sister Sarah, who was 45. Sarah Chester is survived by her husband Chris and her two boys Hayden and Riley, both 16, who go to St. Margaret’s Episcopal School in San Juan Capistrano. She is also survived by her mother Cathy George, and another brother, also named Chris.
Head coach Andy George of La Serna against Pacifica in the first half of a CIFSS Division 6 championship football game at California High School on Saturday, November 30, 2019 in Whittier, California. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)
Whittier Daily News coach of the Year: Andy George, La Serna at the SGV Tribune on Wednesday, December 18, 2019 in Monrovia, California. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)
“We’re just sad, I mean, we’re heartbroken,” Andy George said Monday. “It’s starting to settle in a little bit, but I’m still in disbelief. We were always trying to be there for each other and we were really close.
“She’s the one that everybody counted on. She was there for everyone. She was everything to her family, to our family. Anytime I needed anything, she was the person I went to.”
George said his sister Sarah attended La Serna High School and was a standout soccer player on the school team. Her family resided in Orange County.
“I’m going to miss her so much, I already do,” George continued. “She’s strong, kind, intelligent, funny, beautiful, and was everything to us.”
George said his niece Payton loved basketball and said she had played with Bryant’s Mamba team for some time. He said his sister and her family got to know the Bryant family well.
“She was on the Mamba team for years, she loved it,” George said of Payton. “It was obviously a big part of her life. He (Bryant) was always there for them. (Payton) wanted to play in high school and college.
“It’s just so hard to believe they’re gone.”
George started choking up even more talking about his niece.
“She had this sweetest soul, the kindest, most gentlest person you would ever meet,” George said of Payton. “She always had a huge smile on her face. Every time we would see her she would spend all her time with my little daughters.
“She enjoyed every minute of being there for them, and in basketball, she worked so hard at it. She was good, she had a big future ahead for her. It’s just so devastating.”
The Chester family released a statement on Monday.
“Yesterday we lost our mother and wife, Sarah, and sister and daughter, Payton. We are devastated by this loss. Sarah and Payton were the lights of our family,” the statement read.
“Payton had a smile and personality that would light any room, and a passion for the game of basketball. She found joy on any court and loved all of her teammates and coaches. Sarah was full of life and the glue of our family. She was a tireless force in support of her family. The love we feel from so many today is a testament to the community she created for us.
“Our prayers and condolences go out to the Bryant, Altobelli, and Mauser families. We were all blessed to be a part of Team Mamba, and we will always remember the fun and love that we all shared. We also send our prayers and condolences to the Zobayan family. We are thankful for the love and support of our family, friends and community. Please allow us privacy to grieve during this time.”
Payton attended Harbor View Elementary through fifth grade before moving on to St. Margaret’s Episcopal School, where she was in eighth grade.
The former principal at Harbor View Elementary, Todd Schmidt, took to Facebook to express his feelings about the two that he knew while he was there.
“As folks mourn the loss of Kobe Bryant, I want to take a moment to remember two gorgeous human beings who were with him, Sarah and Payton Chester,” he wrote. “As a principal, we work with some amazing families, the Chesters were one of those, engaged, supportive, encouraging, and full of mischief and laughter and they had the best kiddos!
“This family made such a huge impact at Harbor View. They were genuine, kind-hearted, and caring to the staff, to other families and yes, especially to me.
“While the world mourns the loss of a dynamic athlete and humanitarian, I mourn the loss of two people just as important. Their impact was just as meaningful, their loss will be just as keenly felt, and our hearts are just as broken.
“You were both the embodiment of #hvepride, and the world is just a little less without you both in it. May you both Rest In Peace and know the deep impact you had on our lives. You will be so sorely missed.”
Whittier College President Linda Oubré sent a letter Monday.
“Dear Poet Community:
I am deeply saddened to share the news that alumna Sarah (George) Chester ’97 and her young daughter, Payton, died in a helicopter accident yesterday morning. …
“Sarah, as many of you know, was part of our extended Poet family. Her mother Cathy George worked at the college for 30 years and her two brothers also graduated from Whittier. While at Whittier, Sarah played volleyball and met her future husband Chris Chester ’97. Sarah is survived by Chris and their two sons.
Please join me in sending condolences and prayers to the Chester and George families.”
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A man was killed in a solo crash Monday morning, Jan. 13, on the eastbound 60 Freeway in Walnut.
The crash shut down one lane for nearly three and a half hours. The coroner’s office has not yet identified the driver but the California Highway Patrol described him as a man in his early 20s.
The man was driving a 2015 Hyundai Sonata eastbound on the 60 Freeway, east of Lemon Avenue, at 5:25 a.m. when the car veered to the right and left the road, CHP Officer Richard Green said in a statement.
Green said the Sonata ended up on the freeway shoulder and went partly up a dirt embankment where it hit a freeway sign pole.
Firefighters removed one person who was trapped in the car and pronounced the person dead at the scene, Los Angeles County Fire Inspector Sean Ferguson said.
Alcohol and drugs are not suspected to be factors, Green said.
He said a SigAlert was issued for the No. 5 eastbound lane at around 5:50 a.m. and canceled at around 9:30 a.m.
Anyone with information about the crash is asked to call Officer Green at the Baldwin Park CHP office, 626-338-1164.
A 19-year-old Rancho Cucamonga man suffered serious injuries after his car hit two light poles and a fire hydrant early Tuesday morning.
The solo crash occurred on North Diamond Bar Boulevard and Soltaire Street in Diamond Bar at 2:44 a.m.
Deputies responded to a report of a collision and found an unresponsive driver in the front seat of a sedan, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Lt. Mario Avola. In addition to the light poles, he said the car also struck a hydrant, which damaged a water line.
Avola said firefighters removed the man from the car and took him to Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center. The man’s injuries included a skull fracture and a ruptured diaphragm.
One man was killed and five people were injured Monday night after a collision involving four vehicles on the 10 Freeway in West Covina.
The California Highway Patrol said the man who died was 28 years old and from San Dimas. He was a passenger in one of the vehicles.
The crash happened on the westbound 10 Freeway, just east of Holt Avenue at 5:49 p.m.
A Chevrolet Express van traveling about 60 mph on the No. 2 lane rear-ended a Smart car, according to a statement from the California Highway Patrol. The Smart car was pushed into a Chrysler Aspen which then rear-ended a Kia Stinger.
The 37-year-old Chino Hills man who drove the Smart car and his passenger suffered blunt force trauma and were taken to Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center, a CHP official said. The passenger died shortly before midnight. His name was not released pending notification of his family.
The driver of the Express, a 60-year-old Sun Valley man, ended up with facial cuts, the CHP said. The Aspen’s driver, a 43-year-old La Puente man, was taken to Emanate Health Foothill Presbyterian Hospital with shoulder, leg and back pain.
The driver of the Stinger, a 40-year-old Covina woman, had pain in her shoulder, neck and back, while her passenger, a 69-year-old Covina woman, had head, neck and back pain.
The CHP shut down all lanes of the westbound 10, east of Holt Avenue at 6:12 p.m. All lanes reopened three hours later.
Anyone with information about the collision is asked to call Officer S. Salama at the Baldwin Park CHP office, 626-338-1164.
