Coroner identifies motorcyclist killed in crash on Angeles Crest Highway

A 55-year-old man was killed in a motorcycle crash Sunday afternoon on Angeles Crest Highway, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The motorcyclist was identified as Manuel Lumbattis Morales of Los Angeles, according to CHP Officer Thomas Miller.

Morales was riding a 2005 Honda when he collided with a 2012 Lexus CT 200 near mile marker 45 along the highway at about 1:30 p.m., said Sgt. Becky Lynch with the California Highway Patrol’s Altadena station.

An autopsy was pending, said Coroner's Assistant Chief Ed Winter. Preliminary reports indicate Morales was apparently riding at a "high rate of speed" when the collision occurred, he said.

A rescue helicopter was dispatched to the scene, where a physician on-board declared Morales dead after administering CPR, according to Reserve Chief Mike Leum of the Montrose Search and Rescue Team at L.A. County Sheriff’s Crescenta Valley station.

Leum said that stretch of Angeles Crest Highway is “twisty” and was the site of 30 motorcycle accidents last year -- a “higher number” compared to previous years.

He said all the motorcycle accidents last year occurred either on a Saturday or Sunday.

“My understanding is most of those are because of excessive speed,” Leum said. “I’m not saying this one was because of excessive speed, but as a general rule, most motorcycle accidents that we respond to are because of excessive speed.”