605 Freeway reopens after gunfire prompts closure in Los Alamitos

All lanes of the southbound 605 Freeway reopened in Los Alamitos on Thursday afternoon following an hours-long closure after a person allegedly shot at California Highway Patrol officers earlier in the day, authorities said.

The incident occurred about 9:20 a.m. when two officers — who were on detail while California Department of Transportation employees performed landscaping and road maintenance work off the freeway near Katella Avenue — “made contact with a male pedestrian in the brush area,” at which point “an officer-involved shooting occurred,” a CHP official told reporters at the scene.

“It’s our understanding that there was an individual that either came out of a tent or was near the tent and engaged with the officer,” Andy Perez, public and media affairs chief for Caltrans District 12, said around noon.

Specifics about the shooting — such as how many shots were fired and whether officers used their weapons — remain unclear. However, KTLA-TV Channel 5 reported that a man was found dead in the area early Thursday afternoon.

CHP representatives have not responded to The Times’ requests for comment.

Law enforcement personnel can be seen near the Katella Avenue onramp to the 605 Freeway in Los Alamitos Thursday.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

It’s unclear, too, whether any officers were injured, but Perez said that no Caltrans workers were hurt.

“Fortunately, all Caltrans employees are safe and accounted for and immediately left the worksite,” he said.

All southbound lanes of the freeway were open again as of 1:42 p.m.