SAN DIEGO – A man died after a truck he was riding in lost control and rolled onto a State Route 52 onramp in Santee early Tuesday morning.
Just before 5 a.m. a truck carrying three people was headed west on SR-52 when the driver lost control and the truck went off the freeway and landed upside down on the onramp from Mission Gorge Road to SR-52 westbound.
According to the California Highway Patrol, one of the passengers died at the scene. He was identified as a 31-year-old man from El Cajon. San Diego Fire-Rescue crews had to use the Jaws of Life to remove the doors and extricate him.
The driver and another passenger were taken to a nearby hospital with minor to moderate injuries.
The westbound ramp was shut down and a Sig Alert was issued at about 5:30 a.m. Traffic was moving intermittently on westbound SR-52. Drivers were advised to avoid the area and use alternate routes, such as State Route 125 south to Interstate 8.
The exact cause and circumstances of the crash were under investigation. The San Diego Medical Examiner was on scene. Neither drugs nor alcohol were believed to have played a role in the crash.
