SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — A road rage incident on Interstate 5 brought traffic to a standstill. It happened on March 8 around 4 p.m. in the southbound lanes near Front Street.
It's unclear what led up to the incident, but cell phone video taken by a witness shows two men fighting in one of the lanes.
One man can be heard yelling racial slurs as he repeatedly punches and kicks the other man who is on the ground. After a short time, they both walk back to their cars, but it didn’t end there.
“Everyone was in shock wondering what was going on,” said witness Arturo Gonzalez.
At one point, the men were fighting so close to Gonzalez’s car, one of them falls into it.
After the fight ended, Gonzalez says one of the men grabbed a hammer from inside his car.
"The guy went back to his trunk, went inside his trunk and pulled out a hammer,” said Gonzalez.
Gonzalez says by that time, the other driver had sped off. California Highway Patrol officers arrived soon after.
A spokesperson tells CBS 8, they never caught up with either man, and so far, no one has filed a report.
"Both parties were gone when we got there, so it makes it more difficult to find who these people are," said Officer Juan Escobar.
Escobar says this case points to an even bigger issue.
While the CHP doesn't track road rage incidents since they often get called in as something else, his office has noticed an uptick.
Nationally, insurance comparison site thezebra.com reported a 500% increase in reported road rage cases over the past ten years.
According to AAA, road rage, also known as aggressive driving, is a factor in more than 50% of crashes that end in death.
Over the weekend, Saundralina Williams, a 27-year-old mother of three, died after being shot while driving on the 94. Though the case is under investigation, her family says they question if road rage was involved.
“People can get hurt, seriously injured, possibly killed too. It can escalate very quickly,” said Officer Escobar.
Officer Escobar advises, think before you act. For example, if someone is tailgating you, let them pass, take a breath, and don't engage.
Arturo Gonzalez says he's glad it appears as though neither driver in this latest case was seriously hurt, considering how bad it could have been.
“It was scary. You never know what can happen when an angry person’s adrenaline is through the roof.”
CHP investigators have seen the video. They are looking into it, but at this point, no charges have been filed.
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