A driver in a pickup died Friday morning when he slammed the vehicle into an Oceanside traffic light during a brief chase by deputies, a sheriff’s official said.
Pool cleaning chemicals spilled in the crash, creating a noxious mix that sent one deputy to the hospital and forced authorities to shut down the intersection until a hazardous materials crew could clean it up.
The incident started with a commercial burglary alarm about 4:30 a.m. from the community pool area of a gated residential community off Shadowridge Drive in Vista, sheriff’s Lt. Jeff Ford said.
Deputies soon arrived to find a man passed out in the driver’s seat of a pickup. They also spotted pool equipment in the truck bed and what they suspected were illegal drugs in the center console.
They woke him up and he quickly drove off. The deputies scrambled back to their patrols vehicle and started looking for him. They soon saw him, turned on their lights and sirens and gave chase.
About 20 seconds later, the fleeing pickup slammed head-on into a traffic light pole on Cannon Road at Lake Boulevard in Oceanside, very near city’s border with Vista, Ford said.
Deputies jumped out to pull the man from the wreckage, but were overwhelmed by the fumes from the now-spilled pool chemicals.
The chemicals mixed together “creating a large plume, most likely muriatic acid,” Vista Fire Battalion Chief Brian Gregson told OnScene TV.
One deputy was taken to a hospital with inhalation injuries, Gregson said.
Vista fire crews had to wear breathing apparatus, Gregson said. Vista fire crews were able to take the man out of the mangled truck, but he was dead.
A hazardous materials crew was called in to clean up the chemical spill, Oceanside police Lt. Scott Garrett said. The road reopened before 3 p.m.
Oceanside police will investigate the crash because it occurred in their jurisdiction. The Sheriff’s Department will conduct a separate, parallel investigation.
The Medical Examiner’s Office will release the name of the driver after they notify his family of his death.
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