Five killed, one seriously injured in Irvine freeway crash
A carload of teenagers returning home from a night at Knott’s Scary Farm crashed on the 5 Freeway in Irvine early Saturday, killing five and seriously injuring a sixth, authorities said.
The fiery single-car accident happened around 2:15 a.m. between Sand Canyon Avenue and Alton Parkway, said Fire Capt. Steve Concialdi of the Orange County Fire Authority.
Three males and two females were killed inside the four-door BMW sedan, and a sixth was transported to Mission Hospital in serious condition with a head injury, Concialdi said. The fire captain said he didn’t know if the survivor, a male, was the driver.
The survivor told responding paramedics that the group had just spent the night at Knott’s Scary Farm and was on its way home. Concialdi said he didn’t have the ages or names of the victims but KTLA reported that they were teenagers.
Officials say the car caught on fire after it left the freeway shoulder and crashed into an embankment. A photograph taken at the scene shows a badly burned and flattened sedan being hoisted from the scene.
catherine.saillant@latimes.com
Follow me on Twitter at https://twitter.com/csaillant2
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
