Anatomy of a Crash: Accident Shines Spotlight on Perilous Stretch of Ocean Park Blvd.

By Olin Ericksen
Staff Writer

September 13 -- Only minutes before nearby crosswalks filled with school children along a perilous stretch of Ocean Park Boulvard, a BMW was crushed in a head-on collision with a large Department of Water and Power Utility Truck resulting in serious injuries to the car’s driver.

Around 2:30 p.m. a black sedan traveling east between 14th and 16th streets at what may have been excessive speed veered left and collided head on with a 10-wheeled repair vehicle the size of a small house.

The sheer force of the impact whipped the car around, bringing it to rest against a vehicle parked on the south side of Ocean Park Boulevard. While police had not reconstructed the scene, one officer said the vehicle was traveling “fast.”

Rescuers pry driver from vehicle. (Photo by Ann K. Williams)

Police said the sedan’s driver would live, but they described her injuries as “serious” – including a possible fracture of her elbow -- and she was transported to the hospital by ambulance.

As police cordoned off the area – which has been the site of numerous accidents and is under consideration for a redesign, by City planners – paramedics attended to the woman, whose legs were trapped under the twisted fuselage.

For nearly 30 minutes fire personnel worked to free the woman, using the “jaws of life” to sheer the door off the car.

Scared and disoriented, the woman told witnesses at the scene that she was reaching for a cigarette when the accident happened.

The driver of the utility vehicle was also shaken up and sustained injuries to his wrist.

Soon after the accident, Sunset Park neighbors ran from their houses after hearing the explosion of shattered glass and metal, with some neighbors rushing to the scene to provide assistance

Many commented that this was one of several accidents that have taken place along the stretch of road, which city planners have said is a major artery in and out of Santa Monica.

Rescue workers attend to driver of utility truck. (Photo by Colin Maduzia)

Between 17,000 and 19,000 vehicles every weekday use the corridor, according to City officials. It’s at its peak usage, they say, when school is in session.

John Adams Middle School, Rogers Elementary and Santa Monica College are only a few blocks from the scene of the accident.

When asked if the fire department respond often to the intersection, one firefighter said, “definitely” and referred to the intersections’ moniker among emergency personnel.

“You mean O.P. and 14th,” he said. “We get calls there all the time.”

As for the woman, police said if she was not in such a well-equipped vehicle with airbags, seatbelt and other devices, they may have been transporting her to the morgue, not the hospital.