TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS CLAIM LIVES OF 2 EAST COUNTY RESIDENTS; CHULA VISTA COUNCILMAN WAS DRIVER WHO STRUCK, KILLED DULZURA MAN

December 5, 2009 (San Diego’s East County) – Two traffic accidents on December 3rd killed Thomas Edwin Klopfstein, 58, of Dulzura and an El Cajon man whose name has not been release pending notification of kin.

Klopfstein, a pedestrian, was struck by a Toyota pickup truck while trying to cross Highway 94 against traffic at the Community Road intersection at 7:05 a.m. The driver stopped and emergency authorities responded to a 911 call. Advanced cardiac life support was initiated but to no avail due to the extent of injuries.  Chula Vista Councilman Rudy Ramirez was the driver, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

In a separate incident, a 43-year-old divorced Hispanic man who resided in El Cajon was killed the same morning after his 1990 Toyota pickup changed lanes and collided with two other vehicles on I-8, overturning onto Camino del Rio North. He was pronounced dead at the scene due to blunt force head injuries. The Coroner’s office has not yet released the victim’s name pending notification of kin.