Support for LAist comes from
We Explain L.A.
Stay Connected

Share This

This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.

This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.

News

'Violent' Crash In Lancaster Kills 3 People After They Are Ejected From Their Car

Support your source for local news!
Today, put a dollar value on the trustworthy reporting you rely on all year long. The local news you read here every day is crafted for you, but right now, we need your help to keep it going. In these uncertain times, your support is even more important. We can't hold those in power accountable and uplift voices from the community without your partnership. Thank you.

Three people have been killed in a "violent" car crash in Lancaster that sent debris and human remains flying throughout the neighborhood.

Witnesses say the Jeep Cherokee, which may have been traveling up to 80 mph, collided with a pickup truck making a left turn at the intersection of 25th Street West and Avenue K just before 6 p.m. on Friday night. The posted speed limit in the area is 50 mph. Four people, of five, were ejected from the Jeep after it went flying into a metal stop light pole and slammed into a tree. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department told NBC 11 that the people ejected from the Jeep were not wearing their seatbelts.

Three of the victims that were ejected were killed, including a child. Two were pronounced dead at the scene and another died at the hospital. The crash was so violent that parts of the Jeep were thrown over 100 feet from the site of the impact and even into a tree. Local resident Debbie Calvert wound up consoling a neighbor who had human remains land in her yard.

Calvert told NBC 11 that the Jeep may have ran a red light, and asked "How many more people have to die before the speed limit is lowered?"

Support for LAist comes from

Neighbors say that car crashes are far too common of a sight at that intersection, primarily because drivers try to beat yellow and red lights. "Normally on this intersection there's probably an accident every week and a half or so, and you hear the tires screeching and then a crash. This one was completely different, there was like a double 'thump' and I've never heard that before," Michelle Larimore told KTLA.

KTLA's broadcast from the site of the accident even showed a local residence's brick wall knocked over from an accident that had just happened a week prior.

The driver of the pickup truck suffered only minor injuries.

Most Read