A car, driven too fast around a wet curve, sideswiped an oncoming utility van on Kanan Dume Road in Malibu on Tuesday, ripping apart the car and killing its driver instantly, authorities said.
The crash was at a curve one mile uphill from Pacific Coast Highway, just inside the Malibu city limits, said sheriff’s Lt. John Lecrivian. It was reported in a driving rainstorm at 3:58 p.m.
The car hit an oncoming Southern California Edison truck, whose driver was not injured.
“The cause was excessive speed for the conditions, and crossing the center line, and it was wet,” Lecrivian said.
A sheriff’s search and rescue team was called out to look for other people who possibly were thrown from the car and down a steep embankment, but no one was found.
Investigators reopened the road at 8:05 p.m. Until the crash, Kanan Dume Road was being used as one of the few open roads between Malibu and surrounding areas, as both ends of Pacific Coast Highway had been closed due to apparent storm-related problems.
The victim’s name will be released after family members are notified, Lecrivian said.
