UPDATE: Man Who Died In Fiery I-15 Big-Rig Crash Identified

4/26 UPDATE 7 p.m.: The trucker who died Monday on the 15 Freeway in Lake Elsinore has been identified.

Greg Scott Etienne, 37, of La Habra, was pronounced dead at 12:10 p.m. at the scene after his big rig crashed and erupted into flames on the I-15 southbound approximately 2.7 miles south of Indian Truck Trail in Lake Elsinore.

Etienne apparently lost control of his Freightliner tractor-trailer and crashed into two vehicles around 11 a.m. on southbound I- 15, near Lake Street, according to the California Highway Patrol.

CHP Officer Sylvia Vargas said that moments before the collision, 22- year-old Jonathan Winsor of Murrieta had a blowout on his 1999 Dodge Durango and pulled onto the shoulder. He called a friend for help, and 22-year-old Joel Duenas drove out to meet Winsor in his 1994 Honda Civic.

While the two motorists were standing next to their vehicles, the trucker, traveling in the slow lane, "failed to maintain ... proper roadway position and veered onto the right shoulder,'' colliding with the Dodge and the Honda, Vargas said. "The Honda struck Mr. Duenas, who was thrown down the dirt embankment,'' the CHP spokeswoman said.

The victim was transported to Inland Valley Medical Center in Wildomar for treatment of critical injuries.

The tractor-trailer, filled with flour for food processing, overturned on the dirt embankment and burst into flames, according to Vargas. Fire crews were able to quickly contain the blaze consuming the 18- wheeler, but the driver perished at the scene.

A Sigalert was issued at 11:19 a.m. and remained in effect until 2 p.m., with one lane of the freeway closed in the area of the collision. Winsor was not injured in the collision, according to Vargas.

4/25 UPDATE 6:06 p.m.: A trucker was killed and another person was badly injured today when a big rig overturned and erupted in flames after striking two cars parked on the shoulder of Interstate 15 in Lake Elsinore.

The truck driver, a 37-year-old La Habra man whose name was withheld pending family notification, apparently lost control of his Freightliner tractor-trailer and crashed into the vehicles around 11 a.m. on southbound I- 15, near Lake Street, according to the California Highway Patrol.

CHP Officer Sylvia Vargas said that moments before the collision, 22- year-old Jonathan Winsor of Murrieta had a blowout on his 1999 Dodge Durango and pulled onto the shoulder. He called a friend for help, and 22-year-old Joel Duenas drove out to meet Winsor in his 1994 Honda Civic.

While the two motorists were standing next to their vehicles, the trucker, traveling in the slow lane, "failed to maintain ... proper roadway position and veered onto the right shoulder,'' colliding with the Dodge and the Honda, Vargas said. "The Honda struck Mr. Duenas, who was thrown down the dirt embankment,'' the CHP spokeswoman said.

The victim was transported to Inland Valley Medical Center in Wildomar for treatment of critical injuries.

The tractor-trailer, filled with flour for food processing, overturned on the dirt embankment and burst into flames, according to Vargas. Fire crews were able to quickly contain the blaze consuming the 18- wheeler, but the driver perished at the scene.

A Sigalert was issued at 11:19 a.m. and remained in effect until 2 p.m., with one lane of the freeway closed in the area of the collision. Winsor was not injured in the collision, according to Vargas. --City News Service

UPDATE 12:31 p.m.: A big-rig driver has died and a pedestrian was critically injured in a fiery crash on the southbound 15 Freeway in Lake Elsinore.

At approximately 11 a.m., Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department reported that a big rig and passenger vehicle had crashed just north of Lake Street on the southbound I-15.

According to Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department spokewoman Jody Hagemann, the passenger vehicle occupant was not treated for injuries, but the big-rig driver was pronounced dead at 11:30 a.m.

The pedestrian was critically injured and was transported to Inland Valley Medical Center in Wildomar. It is unclear why the pedestrian was on the roadway.

The passenger vehicle is believed to be a Dodge Ram pickup truck.

No identities have been released yet.

The accident is under investigation and a sigalert is still in affect.

UPDATE 12:15 p.m.: Officials on scene have confirmed that the fiery crash on the southbound 15 in Lake Elsinore has left a big-rig driver dead.

According to officials, the victim was pronounced dead at 11:3o a.m.

The crash, which involved a pickup truck and a big rig, was reported at approximately 11 a.m. just north of Lake Street on the southbound I-15 in Lake Elsinore.

The pickup truck driver was transported by paramedics in critical condition to an area hospital.

A sigalert is still in affect on the southbound side of the 15 Freeway at Lake Street.

More details to follow.

UPDATE 11:45 a.m.: CHP has issued a sigalert on the southbound 15 Freeway as a result of the crash. Expect delays.

UPDATE 11:36 a.m.: CHP is reporting that the number three lane on the southbound I-15 at Lake Street is closed due to the accident.

UPDATE 11:32 a.m.: Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department is now reporting the truck is a big rig, not a cement truck. The truck was hauling flour.

ORIGINAL POST: Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department is reporting that two people have been critically injured in a traffic collision involving a cement truck and a passenger vehicle on the southbound I-15 just north of Lake Street in Lake Elsinore.

According to the report, the cement truck is on fire and the driver is trapped.

The incident was reported at approximately 11 a.m.

More information to come.