Freeway

A two-car collision that left an SUV on its back snarled the eastbound 101 Freeway in the San Fernando Valley on Monday afternoon. Three of five lanes were closed from Laurel Canyon Boulevard, and one person was injured,  California Highway Patrol Officer Jennifer Cassidy told The Times . The crash occurred about 1:20 p.m. west of the 134 Freeway, Cassidy said. Authorities issued an indefinite SigAlert. The overturned red SUV, which had collided with a Toyota Camry, was still on the roadway about 3 p.m. -- Adolfo Flores, Los Angeles Times

BURBANK — A gasoline spill on the Ventura (134) Freeway on Monday shut down westbound traffic for six hours after a tanker truck overturned near the Buena Vista Street exit. The spill occurred just before 8 a.m. as a result of an accident involving three cars and the tanker, California Highway Patrol Officer Francisco Villalobos said. "The collision resulted in the tanker truck losing about 100 gallons of fuel, which facilitated the closure of the westbound lanes of the 134," he said.

BURBANK ? A Glendale man died Sunday night when his car swerved off the freeway into a tree, the California Highway Patrol said Monday. Arvin Esagolian, 19, was traveling south on the Golden State (5) Freeway at about 7:45 p.m. when he lost control of his 1996 Acura just south of Scott Road in Burbank, CHP Officer Todd Workman said. The car struck a palm tree on the right shoulder, knocking it over and causing major damage to his car, he said. Esagolian, who was driving alone, was pronounced dead at the scene by the Glendale Fire Department.

Authorities have reopened a one-mile stretch of the eastbound Ventura (134) Freeway after closing it for five hours Thursday when a tanker truck overturned near the Bob Hope Drive offramp, spilling gasoline onto the road and into a nearby park. Officers diverted traffic off the freeway at Pass Avenue and other surface streets beginning about 10:20 a.m. after the tanker began gushing fuel onto the highway, according to the California Highway Patrol. The tanker was carrying about 4,500 gallons of gasoline, hundreds of gallons of which spilled out across the freeway into storm drains and down onto Johnny Carson Park, Burbank Fire Capt.

Good morning, readers. Today is Monday, November 19. Two fatal accidents caused the closure of parts of the 5 Freeway early Monday morning . Few details are available about the first accident, which was reported at 12:06 a.m. near the Colorado Boulevard interchange. In the second accident, reported at 2:15 a.m., a car went down an embankment on the transition road that connects the eastbound 134 Freeway to the southbound 5 Freeway. Los Angeles Times An accident on the Ronald Reagan (118)

The Golden State (5) Freeway will be closed for two hours early Sunday morning from Buena Vista Street and Lincoln Street, according to the California Department of Transportation. From 2 to 4 a.m., the freeway will be closed in both directions while crews remove overhead utility lines as part of a $355-million Empire interchange construction project. Lane closures will begin around midnight on Saturday. To avoid delays, Caltrans has asked motorists heading northbound on the 5 freeway to take the westbound Ventura (134)

[Updated 7:08 p.m.] All lanes are now clear following a series of accidents in Burbank. A three-car crash caused a series of accidents in Burbank Monday afternoon. Burbank Fire along with Los Angeles City Fire responded to the westbound lanes of the 134 Freeway near Hollywood Way at 4:45 p.m. today, according to California Highway Patrol. An SUV involved in the collision was overturned beneath the Hollywood Way overpass. Some motorists involved were treated at a local hospital for minor injuries.

Starting Sunday, Alameda Avenue at the Golden State (5) Freeway will be closed for work on the new carpool lane project through Burbank. The closure will last through Thursday, from midnight to 6 a.m. each day to allow for bridge demolition work, according to an announcement from the city. Traffic will be diverted south to Allen Avenue, which is the freeway crossing immediately south of Alameda.  Flower Street or Lake Street are recommended to get to Allen, and motorists can expect to see traffic control and detour signs, according to the city's website.

A big-rig fire that shut down four lanes on the southbound Golden State (5) Freeway Monday afternoon was caused by overheated brakes, authorities said. California Highway Patrol officers were pursuing the big rig driver, who may have been under the influence of alcohol, after receiving reports that he was driving slow while not staying in his lane, according to CHP Sgt. Becky Lynch. During the pursuit, authorities noticed smoke coming from the tires under the trailer as the driver reached Hollywood Way on the 5 Freeway in Burbank, at which point officers pulled their patrol car up in front of the truck to get the driver to stop.

Construction on the Golden State (5) Freeway between Magnolia Boulevard and the Ventura (134) Freeway, which was stalled for six months after workers discovered unmapped utility lines, started back up this week, leaving Burbank commuters with a new round of closures. The $153-million project to construct a carpool lane in each direction of the freeway between the 134 Freeway and Magnolia Boulevard, is nearly halfway done. It's slated to be completed in the fall of 2016, officials with the California Department of Transportation said.

The driver of a big-rig that caught fire on the southbound Golden State (5) Freeway Monday afternoon - temporarily shutting down four freeway lanes and causing traffic delays - was arrested after the incident on suspicion of drunk driving, authorities said. The man, identified as 48-year-old Samuel Garcia of Northridge, was driving the empty truck on the freeway when witnesses called authorities to report that he was driving slow and not staying in his lane, said Sgt. Becky Lynch of the California Highway Patrol.

A big-rig fire that shut down four lanes on the southbound Golden State (5) Freeway Monday afternoon was caused by overheated brakes, authorities said. California Highway Patrol officers were pursuing the big rig driver, who may have been under the influence of alcohol, after receiving reports that he was driving slow while not staying in his lane, according to CHP Sgt. Becky Lynch. During the pursuit, authorities noticed smoke coming from the tires under the trailer as the driver reached Hollywood Way on the 5 Freeway in Burbank, at which point officers pulled their patrol car up in front of the truck to get the driver to stop.

A big rig caught fire on the southbound Golden State (5) Freeway just south of Hollywood Way in Burbank on Monday afternoon, and police are warning that motorists should use caution. [Update 1:46 p.m.:  According to the California Highway Patrol online incident log, four lanes were closed for roughly 20 minutes after 1 p.m. ] As of 1:31 p.m., just one lane, as well as the Hollywood Way on-ramp to the southbound 5 Freeway, remained closed, the log stated. Further details were not immediately available.

The Golden State (5) Freeway will be closed for two hours early Sunday morning from Buena Vista Street and Lincoln Street, according to the California Department of Transportation. From 2 to 4 a.m., the freeway will be closed in both directions while crews remove overhead utility lines as part of a $355-million Empire interchange construction project. Lane closures will begin around midnight on Saturday. To avoid delays, Caltrans has asked motorists heading northbound on the 5 freeway to take the westbound Ventura (134)

Two burglars wound up in the hospital Wednesday morning after allegedly breaking into a car in Burbank and initiating a high-speed chase that ended with the stolen vehicle crashing on a freeway off-ramp. The Burbank Police Department responded to a possible vehicle burglary in progress on the 600 block of North Frederic Street around 5:30 a.m. when an officer spotted a Volkswagon Jetta in the neighborhood driving on the wrong side of the street with no lights on, said Lt. John Dilibert.

The big rig that caught on fire on the northbound Golden State (5) Freeway was carrying kitchen grease, which was starting to spill in the roadway on Wednesday afternoon, according to CHP's online log. Caltrans and the Burbank Fire Department reported to the scene to help clean up. As of 3:02 p.m., one freeway lane, along with the Lincoln Street off-ramp, remained closed. [Updated 3:30 p.m.] A Sigalert was issued Wednesday afternoon after a big rig caught fire on the 5 freeway near Lincoln Street in Burbank, authorities said.

All lanes and off-ramps of the northbound Golden State (5) Freeway near Lincoln Street were reopened Wednesday afternoon after emergency crews extinguished a truck fire and towed it away. The truck was hauling kitchen grease, which started to spill in the roadway when the truck caught fire, said California Highway Patrol Officer Tony Polizzi. Authorities said it was unclear if the kitchen grease caused the blaze, but the truck was not involved in a collision. Caltrans and the Burbank Fire Department reported to the scene to clean up the spill.

Construction on the Golden State (5) Freeway between Magnolia Boulevard and the Ventura (134) Freeway, which was stalled for six months after workers discovered unmapped utility lines, started back up this week, leaving Burbank commuters with a new round of closures. The $153-million project to construct a carpool lane in each direction of the freeway between the 134 Freeway and Magnolia Boulevard, is nearly halfway done. It's slated to be completed in the fall of 2016, officials with the California Department of Transportation said.

A story that may be of interest to your readers is the apparent suspension of work, or lack of progress over the last couple of months on the Golden State (5) Freeway work through Burbank. On the southbound lanes it is particularly frustrating due to the elimination of the right-side breakdown lane between roughly Burbank Boulevard and the Los Angeles River, and because of the very short merge provisions for vehicles entering the freeway from both Verdugo and Alameda avenues. The lack of any progress on the Western Avenue offramp is also puzzling, as the pavement was removed down to dirt months ago. Is Caltrans so overextended with work on other freeways that I-5 is left an orphan?

Authorities say they believe a motorcyclist who died in a crash on the 134 Freeway on Tuesday morning suffered fatal injuries when he was run over by a big rig. Ozer Ozyildirim, 42, of Los Angeles died at the scene of the collision, said Los Angeles County Coroner's Assistant Chief Ed Winter. CHP Officer Tom Miller said Ozyildirim was riding a 2012 BMW motorcycle at around 65 mph on the westbound 134 approaching the 5 Freeway, when for an “unknown reason” he veered to the right and collided with a guard rail, the Los Angeles Times reported . The collision caused the motorcycle to overturn, and Ozyildirim was ejected into the roadway, Miller said.