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A U.S. Marine stationed in California died on Monday after he stopped on a freeway to help a pair of stranded motorists.
According to theTheLos Angeles Times, Lance Cpl. Alberto Lucio was struck and killed after he tried to help the driver and passenger of a disabled SUV following a crash that occurred around 3:20 a.m. on Monday near San Diego’s Camp Pendleton.
The driver’s SUV had stalled in the middle of Interstate 5 and had its lights off,KSWBreported.
As Lucio stopped to help, a box truck crashed into him and the SUV, per the outlet. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
“He was trying to do the right thing, he was trying to help somebody in need. Unfortunately, the freeway traffic was still moving at the time and the box van came and collided into the vehicle,” California Highway Patrol said in a statement, according to CBS affiliateKFMB.
Lucio, from Tennessee, was a military policeman with USMC Security and Emergency Services Battalion and had been awarded the National Defense Service Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Medal, according toThe Los Angeles Times.
“Security and Emergency Services Battalion sends our deepest condolences and prayers to Lance Cpl. Lucio’s family,” Col. John W. Black, the commanding officer of Security and Emergency Services Battalion, said in a statement published in theMarine Corps Times.
According to theSan Diego Union-Tribune, the 36-year-old driver who Lucio stopped to help was hospitalized along with his passenger, a 31-year-old woman. Their current condition is unknown.
Police told the outlet that the SUV driver is expected to be jailed on suspicion of multiple felony charges, which have not been made public, following his release from the hospital.
source: people.com
