Authorities removed the body of a 20-year-old Burbank man from a 5 Freeway sign Friday morning in Glendale after the driver lost control of his car and was ejected.

California Highway Patrol received a call at 7 a.m. about the driver of a Ford Fiesta traveling recklessly down the southbound 5 Freeway just north of California 134. Shortly after, the car collided with another car, overturned and the driver was ejected, landing on the Colorado Street freeway sign, said Edgar Figueroa, a CHP public information officer.

The driver, Richard Pananian, was not wearing a seatbelt and died, Figueroa said. The Los Angeles Fire Department assisted in removing the body from the sign.

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“I’ve never seen anything like this or heard anything like this,” Figueroa said. “It’s the first time.”

Officials had closed both northbound and southbound lanes on the 5, but most have since reopened. The three and four lanes on the southbound side remain closed for the investigation.

Twitter: @brittny_mejia

Glendale News Press writer Alene Tchekmedyian contributed to this story.


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