A person was found dead late Sunday near an Interstate 80 on-ramp in San Francisco, authorities said, less than an hour after Caltrans reopened a major stretch of eastbound freeway in SoMa that had been closed all weekend for roadwork.
The California Highway Patrol logged the incident as a fatality at 11:38 p.m. Sunday at the Harrison Street on-ramp near Seventh Street, according to the agency’s dispatch feed.
The location is near the 1.6-mile stretch of eastbound I-80 between 17th and Fourth streets that Caltrans closed over the weekend for repaving and repairs to the Fourth Street off-ramp.
The death was reported less than an hour after Caltrans finished roadwork and reopened eastbound I-80 at about 11 p.m. Sunday, roughly seven hours earlier than planned. The closure had been expected to last until 6 a.m. Monday.
A person was found dead near an I-80 on-ramp in San Francisco shortly after Caltrans reopened eastbound lanes in SoMa, authorities said. (California Department of Transportation)
In a statement, CHP spokesperson Mark Andrews said the agency had limited information about the incident but that it appeared “to be a death possibly related to a drug overdose.”
He said CHP could not immediately provide any identifying information about the person.
Dispatch notes show officers were told to respond with police for “OD,” suggesting a possible overdose. The Seventh Street on-ramp intersection was blocked within minutes, according to the dispatch feed. Fire personnel arrived shortly afterward.
The San Francisco County coroner was requested just after midnight and arrived at 12:21 a.m. Monday.
As of Monday, authorities had not publicly confirmed the cause of death. The San Francisco County Coroner’s Office is expected to identify the person.
This article originally published at Person found dead near San Francisco I-80 ramp minutes after freeway reopens.