Woman who plunged 400 feet off forest highway dies

The driver of a car that plunged some 400 feet off the side of the Angeles Forest Highway Friday morning died while being transported to a local hospital, authorities said.

The crash deep inside the Angeles National Forest occurred near mile marker 18.2, a remote area about 30 miles from the intersection of Angeles Forest Highway and Angeles Crest Highway, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Sgt. Cynthia Gonzales said.

According to witnesses, the woman was traveling southbound at a high rate of speed and lost control as she entered a curve on the roadway, California Highway Patrol officer Ming Hsu said.

The woman suffered broken bones and a severed arm during the crash, Hsu said.
Authorities were still working to confirm the woman’s identity.

Montrose Search and Rescue, the National Forest Service, Los Angeles County Fire Department and California Highway Patrol also responded to the crash.

-- Joe Piasecki, joe.piasecki@latimes.com

Follow on Twitter: @JoePiasecki.