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Teen Forced To Study, Avoiding Newport Beach Crash That Killed 5 Friends

By  Emma G. Gallegos
Published May 28, 2013 11:00 PM
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One Irvine teen narrowly avoided being a passenger on a trip to the beach that turned deadly for 5 teens in Newport Beach.

Tamer Mosallam, 17, told the Associated Press that he was supposed to be the third guy on a triple-date with the three other girls and two guys who were headed to the beach for Memorial Day. The group riding in an Infiniti swung by Mosallam's house, but the teen's father refused to let him go.

"They came to my house but my dad wouldn't let me go out because I was studying for a test," Mosallam said.

That was the last time that Mosallam would see his two closest friends—the driver Abdurlrahman M. Alyahyan and Nozad Al Hamawendi—alive. Cecilia Zamora, and sisters Robin Cabrera and Aurora Cabrera were also killed in the crash.

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There was no class Tuesday, but Mosallam and several dozen students gathered outside Irvine High School yesterday to try to make sense of what had happened. The car struck a tree, and four of the victims were pronounced dead at the scene of the horrendous crash. The car was split in two, and first-responders initially thought more than one car was involved.

Related:
Teens Killed In Newport Beach Crash Remembered By Friends
Horrendous Crash Kills 5 Teens in Newport Beach [UPDATED]

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