Crime & Safety

UPDATED: Oceanside Man Dies in Early-Morning Crash Near Ortega Hwy.

The 26-year-old was killed at about 1:30 a.m. when his car careened off an embankment on the northbound 5 freeway in San Juan Capistrano.

A 26-year-old Oceanside man was killed early Thursday morning when his car veered off the northbound 5 freeway and overturned down a 12-foot embankment.

Travis Amsbaugh was headed north on the freeway, just south of Ortega Highway, when for "undetermined reasons," the 2008 Nissan Pathfinder he was driving careened across all of the traffic lanes, the California Highway Patrol reported.

"The vehicle left the roadway, traveling down a 12-foot dirt embankment and into a 2-foot-diameter tree, while overturning onto its roof," said CHP spokesman Chris Goodwin. 

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The crash was reported at 1:33 a.m., and the No. 4 lane and the Ortega Highway off-ramp were shut down for a couple of hours.

"It just looks like this is an unfortunate incident that occurs out here on the freeway," CHP Sgt. Martie Huben-Whener said at the scene. She noted that there were two witnesses who saw the crash. 

Find out what's happening in San Juan Capistranowith free, real-time updates from Patch.


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