Berkeley freeway collision leaves 1 dead, slows AM traffic
The coroner's office has identified the man who died as Charles Nelson, 82, El Cerrito.
A person was killed overnight Thursday in Berkeley in a freeway collision on westbound I-80, authorities report.
Details were scant as of publication time.
Berkeley police and firefighters, as well as the California Highway Patrol, were dispatched just after 3:40 a.m. on a report of a driver who had struck a pedestrian between University and Ashby avenues on westbound Interstate 80.
The driver of a semi-truck called police to say he believed he had hit someone, according to emergency dispatches reviewed by The Scanner.
The person who was killed appeared to have been a driver who had pulled over, possibly to flag down help, authorities said.
Police shut down part of the freeway, including access from University Avenue, during the emergency response.
Freeway traffic slow after fatal Berkeley crash
Berkeley police were clearing the scene and the coroner's office had been alerted to the fatality as of about 4 a.m.
Authorities also issued a Sig Alert advising motorists to expect delays because the two right-most lanes of I-80 West were blocked.
As of about 4:40 a.m., freeway traffic was moving at about 10-15 mph, according to the Sig Alert website.
The Scanner has asked the CHP for details and will update this story if they are provided.
Update, 2:35 p.m. The coroner's office has identified the man who died as Charles Nelson, 82, El Cerrito.
