A 30-year-old man who died after driving north on the southbound side of the San Diego (405) Freeway in Sherman Oaks and slammed head-on into another vehicle was identified Wednesday by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's office.
A CHP spokesman at the scene told reporters the driver, who was identified as Eduardo Membrano, was initially reported driving the wrong way in the southbound carpool lane near the Getty Center.
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The fatal crash injured two other people while forcing a hourslong closure of most freeway lanes that caused a torturous rush hour for thousands of commuters on Tuesday morning.
California Highway Patrol officers responded at 4:06 a.m. Tuesday to the southbound 405 Freeway near the Valley Vista Boulevard exit, where the collision occurred, CHP Officer Sergio Garcia told City News Service.
The driver ultimately slammed into another vehicle head-on, and multiple other cars were also involved in the wreck.
Membrano was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the CHP. The driver of the vehicle he struck was taken to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center with critical injuries, including multiple broken bones, but he was alert and talking to officers and paramedics, according to the CHP.
One other person was evaluated at the scene but declined further medical treatment, according to Mark McLean of the Los Angeles Fire Department.
A SigAlert, issued at 4:26 a.m. closing all southbound lanes, was canceled at 9:38 a.m.
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