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Freeway-collapses Motorist survives

crowd Metrolink freeway plunge

crnton

By Mark Sabbatini The van had been serving food
Continued from page A 1 Signal Staff Writer to workers near the damaged
district is being lost in the earth- transition, said Officer Pablo Tor-
quake shuffle. NEWHALL - A 42-year-old res of the California Highway
"The Santa Clarita Valley is de- man was hospitalized Thursday Patrol.
vastated and it's important the pres- afternoon after driving a catering "For some unknown reason, the
By Susan Goldsmith million for freeway repairs and de- ident realize this is a regional prob- . van off a severed Antelope Valley vehicle went off in the wrong
Signal Staff Writer bris removal, $239 million in Small lem," said Antonovich. "It's impor- Freeway connector ramp that col- direction," he said.
Business Administration money, up tant we get solutions and not lapsed during Monday's earth-
BURBANK-A visibly angered to $ 100 million to fund rental assis- political rhetoric." quake, officials said. The catering vehicle also car-
Los Angeles County Supervisor tance vouchers as well as $34 mil- McKeon said he made Clinton Tony Moufarrege, of Sun Val- ried a refrigerator, a stereo and
Mike Antonovich asked President lion in Community Development well aware the earth uake destruc- ley, drove off the southbound other personal belongings, Sav-
'Clinton and his team of top federal block grants. Clinton also promised ramp at approximately 1 p.m., age said.
>fficials Wednesday to look beyond to ask Congress to reduce the 25 tion was severe in the northern por- landing upside down on a tractor Firefighters used to "Jaws of
t e San Fernando Valley to percent state matching requirement tion of Los Angeles County. below that was used in repairing Life" to extricate Mouffarrege
ea thquake-battered Santa Clarita, for federal assistanceto JO percent. the freeway, said Mark Savage, a from the vehicle, he added.
wh h he said has been shaken by a "I think you have a very strong "I told him, 'Look, this is my dis- Los Angeles County Fire Depart- The accident is the second since
trer 1or of indifference ever since case for waiver, but before we can trict,"' said McKeon, who is sche- ment inspector. He said Moufar- the overpass collapsed during
Monday's earthquake. do that we need a realistic assess- duled to meet with Transportation rege was airlifted to Henry Mayo Monday's magnitude 6.6 earth-
"Over one-half million people ment" of the cost, Clinton said. "I Secretary Frederico Pena today. "I Newhall Memorial Hospital. quake. Los Angeles Police De-
are impacted and need your assis- think Congress will do the right went to each of these people indivi- Moufarrege was said to be in partment Officer Clarence W.
tance," Antonovich told the presi- thing." dually who can help us. fair condition with minor injuries Dean, 46, died after driving his
dent. "Santa Clarita Valley, which And, Clinton said, ''This is a na- And, he added, "Just getting the late Thursday. motorcycle off the ramp 45 mi-
has over 200,000 people, is land- tional problem . . .. This is some- president here is important. It "He was conscious and talk- nutes after the quake.
locked. The Antelope Valley, thing we plan on staying with to the shows his concern." ing," Savage said. "He was ex- The freeway is closed at the
which has over 200,000 people, is very end." In reference to Clinton and his tremely lucky. seeing as he Placerita Canyon Road off-ramp,
also landlocked. The freeway is Gov. Pete Wilson told Clinton team of officials, McKeon said, dropped 40 feet and landed upside and officials said repairs to the
down and they need the earthquake damage will be the down." freeways will take at least a year.
transportation." costliest in the state's history with
The president toured parts of the preliminary estimates putting the
San Fernando Valley Wednesday total at $30 billion. "These guys, as I've seen them, are
during the one-day visit, with Con- "The people of this community doers."
gressman Howard "Buck" have been through enormous tests Concerned the meeting did little
McKeon, R-Santa Clarita, as one of in the last few years," Wilson said. to bring attention to the northern
his guide. Following the tour, Clin- "These disasters do seem to bring portion of Los Angeles, Antono-
ton conducted a three-hour town out the very best in people ... vich said, "It was a dog and pony
hall meeting at the Burbank Airport They 're shaking but their spirit is show for the city of Los Angeles,
with federal, state and local offi- not broken." which, in my opinion, jeopardizes
cials, including Los Angeles Mayor Although the money will be im- the services needed and required by
Richard Riordan, Gov. Pete Wilson mediately released, including some the citizens in the Santa Clarita Val-
and California Senators Dianne $777,000 for the Santa Clarita Val- ley, Antelope Valley, the city of San
Feinstein and Barbara Boxer. ley in Housing and Urban Develop- Fernando, Santa Monica, Glendale
Clinton and his staff announced ment grants, Antonovich said his and Burbank, who've all been de-
they'd immediately release $45 See CLINTON, page A4 vastated by the earthquake."
SHAUN DYER/The Signal'
The transition from the southbound Antelope Valley Free-
way to northbound Interstate 5 was a quake casualty.