One person died after a five-vehicle crash on the northbound 605 Freeway near the State Route 91 interchange in Cerritos early Tuesday. A tow truck was at the scene when a gold Cadillac Escalade struck vehicles stopped in the left lane, according to OnScene.tv. The collision blocked the northbound lanes for hours.
Crash timeline remains unclear
Accounts differ on when the crashes began. A CHP spokesperson cited by MyNewsLA placed the collision at about 12:29 a.m. KTLA reported that the initial crash was recorded at about 12:30 a.m.; an incident-log review by chpfatal.com lists a later entry at 12:40 a.m. and a change to a fatality classification at 1:01 a.m. OnScene.tv reported the incident began around 12:47 a.m.
OnScene.tv reported that the Escalade hit the stopped vehicles and tow truck. Video described by KTLA shows the tow truck operator moving clear as the SUV approached. Los Angeles County firefighters freed a trapped person who was later pronounced dead, according to OnScene.tv. KTLA reported that authorities had not identified which vehicle the person was in, and that one involved vehicle was found unoccupied, with its driver unaccounted for. Those details and the cause of the crash remained unresolved in the cited reports.
Closure and roadside-safety context
The crash blocked northbound lanes near the 91 interchange, and a full closure was requested at 1:26 a.m., according to the CHP incident-log review by chpfatal.com. KTLA reported that all lanes reopened by 4:45 a.m. The California DMV handbook says drivers must move over and slow down for stationary tow trucks displaying flashing amber warning lights; the available accounts do not establish whether the truck in this crash displayed them.
The danger to roadside workers is a broader national concern, but national figures do not explain this collision. An AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety study counted 123 roadside-assistance providers killed by passing vehicles from 2015 through 2021, compared with about 34 recorded in national crash data, according to AAA The Auto Club Group. That finding is not a measure of local conditions or evidence about the circumstances of Tuesday’s crash.
A separate fatal crash on a nearby connector
Cerritos has had another fatal multi-vehicle crash on a different 605–91 connection: the Press-Telegram reported that two people died in a September 1, 2024, crash involving two pickup trucks and a big rig on the conversion road from eastbound 91 to southbound 605. Tuesday’s collision was on the northbound 605 near the 91 interchange, not that connector. The two incidents are separate examples and do not establish a pattern or a shared cause.
