A driver has died after a dangerous pursuit that ended in a fiery crash early Sunday morning, causing the I-5 to the 55 freeways in Tustin to be shut down.
It is expected that the freeways will be closed for at least 5 hours, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The high speed chase that started the incident ended when the vehicle collided with the guard rail on the northbound 5 freeway and hit the embankment, causing the vehicle to be launched to the other side, according to CHP.
Authorities had seen the vehicle driving on the northbound 55 driving at such a dangerously fast rate, an estimated 100 mph, that they canceled the pursuit, deeming it too dangerous to follow.
The overnight mist had made the pavement slick, where the driver went through the curve at an unsafe speed.
"The speed for going around this curve has been deemed to be safe at 20 mph. and again that vehicle was traveling at estimations from other people witnesses, they estimated his speed to be up over 100 mph at the time of the collision," said Sgt. Hope Maxson of the CHP.
The car crashed into a tree in the embankment and the driver was ejected from the vehicle.
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CalTrans is currently working to fix the guardrail and it is expected the freeways will open back up around 8:30 a.m.
