Three teenagers were killed and another person was injured Thursday when a vehicle crashed over the side of the Santa Ana (5) Freeway in Anaheim.
The wreck happened around 3:15 a.m. Thursday at the southbound Lincoln Avenue off-ramp of the freeway, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The victims were identified as 17-year-old Victor Hugo Delgado of Santa Ana, 16-year-old Robert Miguel Gutierrez-Avalos of Santa Ana and 15-year-old Levi Jacob Flores of Garden Grove, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.
The driver of a Ford Edge traveling southbound on the freeway veered off the road for an unknown reason south of Euclid Street, according to the CHP. The SUV slammed into a guardrail and a concrete pillar before careening down a sloped concrete embankment and overturning before finally ending up in brush.
Two of the boys in the vehicle were pronounced dead at the scene and two others were rushed to an area hospital where one was later pronounced dead, the CHP said.
Investigators say it appears none of the occupants was wearing a seat belt.
According to a CHP incident log, a witness reported that the driver of a white SUV appeared to miss the off-ramp and lost control while making a late attempt to take the exit.
The vehicle flew over the side at high speed and two victims were ejected, according to the log.
The crash closed the off-ramp and four main lanes of the freeway, but two right lanes were reopened at about 5 a.m.
All lanes were reopened by 8 a.m., according to the CHP.