Truck driver injured after big rig carrying produce overturns along Hwy 101, south of Nipomo
May 20—A male truck driver sustained minor injuries Friday after the big rig carrying produce overturned when it hit a guardrail and partially blocked northbound traffic along Highway 101, just south of Nipomo, before reopening hours later, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The collision was reported at 4:40 a.m. after a 2017 International truck pulling a trailer filled with produce and driven by 39-year-old Victor Gonzalez, of Homeland, overturned along Highway 101, just north of Highway 166, when he made an unsafe turning movement, according to the CHP.
Officials said the truck made a turning movement to the right and left the east edge of the highway before it struck a guardrail along the right shoulder.
The impact forced the truck and trailer to travel across the northbound lanes, and leave the west edge of the highway before it struck a guardrail in the center median, according to the CHP.
Officials added that Gonzalez extricated himself from the truck and was transported to Marian Regional Medical Center.
The trailer was unable to be immediately overturned back onto its wheels due to its cargo weight and had to be offloaded of its contents before it was hauled away, according to the CHP.
Caltrans officials issued an alert, notifying the public that the left lane of northbound Highway 101 was blocked for several hours due to the collision.
The highway reopened to traffic at about 2 p.m., according to CHP logs.
