Authorities shut down southbound lanes of the 605 Freeway in Irwindale on Saturday evening after a shooting caused a car to crash, adding to a growing list of shootings along Southern California freeways.
The California Highway Patrol received a call about the collision around 5:13 p.m. at Lower Azusa Road, said CHP Officer Elizabeth Kravig. Officers found a wrecked, white BMW sedan and determined a shooter had fired into the vehicle prior to the crash.
The driver of the BMW was not injured in the shooting or crash, authorities said.
CHP officers promptly closed the freeway to allow investigators to examine the scene of the shooting, Kravig said.
All lanes had reopened by 7:10 p.m., the CHP said.
Information on the suspect or suspects and their vehicle was not immediately available.
Highway authorities have noticed an uptick in shootings among drivers on some Southern California freeways in recent months.
CHP officers from the Baldwin Park area office reported to about four to five freeway shootings over the past 12 months, which is higher than recent years, said CHP Officer Rodrigo Jimenez. He said most of those shootings stemmed from road rage incidents.
In Orange County, a gunman shot and killed a 6-year-old boy during a road rage incident on the 55 Freeway in late May.
Throughout April and May, about 100 motorists have had a window shattered or shot out by a suspect or suspects using BB guns, mostly along the 91 in Corona, Riverside, Anaheim and Cerritos, authorities have said.
Other shootings left vehicles damaged along the 5 Freeway in Irvine, the 105 Freeway in Downey, the 55 Freeway in Santa Ana and the 101 Freeway in the San Fernando Valley, CHP officials have said.
Authorities arrested an Anaheim man in late May who was suspected of at least one of the shootings along the 91 Freeway.
It was not immediately clear whether Saturday’s shooting was tied to any of the prior freeway shootings.