A motorcycle abandoned in the middle of a California highway caused a head-on collision between two semi trucks early on Wednesday morning.
The accident happened at around midnight early on Wednesday morning, December 1st near Hesperia, California.
According to CBS Los Angeles, a 2012 International semi truck was heading southbound on Highway 395 at Poplar Street when it struck a motorcycle that had apparently been abandoned in the middle of the highway. The collision sent the semi truck into the northbound lanes, where it collided head-on with a northbound 2022 Kenworth hauling cattle.
The force of the impact caused the cattle hauler to overturn, trapping the driver inside and injuring multiple cattle. The unnamed driver had to be cut from wreckage and was transported to a nearby hospital for treatment. The extent of his injuries is not known. The driver of the International was not hurt in the crash.
Seven cattle were killed in the wreck, and seven had to be euthanized on-scene. Eight cattle were successfully rescued from the wreckage, while ten more escaped the wrecked trailer and fled into the nearby desert, where they were soon rounded up and returned.
The wreck shut down Highway 395 until 4 p.m. on Wednesday as crews worked to clean up the wreckage, and investigators are now working to identify the motorist who abandoned the motorcycle in the middle of the highway.
Anyone with information about the crash is encouraged to contact Deputy T. Rogoff at the San Bernardino County sheriff’s Hesperia station at (760) 947-1500.