SAN DIEGO -- Authorities sought Wednesday to identify a man killed in a North County traffic accident that left a second motorist seriously injured.

The crash on State Route 76 in Pauma Valley occurred shortly before 4 p.m. Tuesday, when 55-year-old Edward Cory of Fallbrook lost control of the 2003 Dodge Ram truck he was driving, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The westbound pickup struck a telephone pole near Rincon Creek Road before re-entering the street and veering into an eastbound lane, where it collided with an oncoming 2005 GMC van, CHP public affairs Officer Eric Newbury said.

Cory, who was not wearing a seat belt, was hurled through the windshield of the truck and suffered severe injuries, as did the other motorist.

Medics took both men to Palomar Medical Center in Escondido, where the driver of the van was pronounced dead, Newbury said.

The van driver, who remained unidentified this afternoon, was not the registered owner of the Dodge, said Cal Vine, an investigator with the county Medical Examiner's Office.