8 Youths Hurt as Truck Skids Off Mountain Road

Eight Santa Clarita Valley teen-agers celebrating the last night of summer vacation were injured Wednesday--two of them critically--when their truck skidded off a mountain road in the Angeles National Forest and plunged 500 feet down an embankment, authorities said.

The California Highway Patrol said a 15-year-old Newhall youth who did not have a license or his parents’ permission to drive their Ford Bronco was speeding when he missed a curve on the Santa Clara Truck Trail and skidded over the edge about 2:20 a.m.

The driver, whose name was not released because he is a minor, faces charges of speeding and driving without a license, authorities said.

The teen-agers--six boys and two girls--are believed to be friends from William S. Hart High School in Newhall, where classes begin today.

Officials said the teen-agers were transported by ambulance and helicopter to four area hospitals. Theodore Broege, 14, of Newhall and Dawn Collins, 17, of Saugus were in critical condition at Holy Cross Hospital in Mission Hills, authorities said. Jody Hamblin, 17, of Saugus and Troy Jarvis, 15, of Newhall were listed in serious condition at Northridge Medical Center.

Shannon Johnson, 14, of Newhall was in serious condition at Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Panorama City. Nicholas Camerota, 14, of Valencia was in serious condition at Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital in Valencia. Christopher Biddlecomb, 17, of Newhall and the 15-year-old driver of the Bronco were treated for minor injuries and released from Newhall Memorial.

‘Top of the World’ Drive

According to authorities and the mother of one of the victims, the group had apparently been driving on the remote road a mile west of Little Tujunga Road that is a popular spot for viewing the lights of the Santa Clarita Valley. The road is nicknamed “Top of the World” by area teen-agers because of the view, the mother said.

The Bronco was headed east when it went over the edge, CHP Officer Ralph Elvira said. The removable top of the vehicle broke off after the initial impact and six of the occupants were hurled from the tumbling truck.

“The truck flew about 50 feet through the air, then hit and rolled end over end the rest of the way, 500 feet to the bottom of the hill,” said Los Angeles County Fire Department Capt. Charles Seder, one of the first to reach the scene. “The kids were thrown out and scattered along the way. I don’t know why they weren’t all killed.”

Authorities said another car filled with teen-agers was following the Bronco on the paved fire road. One boy got out and attempted to climb down to help his friends, while the others drove to a nearby fire station to report the accident. The young rescuer, whose name was unavailable, also tumbled down the embankment, but he only suffered minor injuries.

The Fire Department rescue effort was aided by two mountain search-and-rescue crews and a Los Angeles police helicopter equipped with a searchlight.

“It was very, very steep, and it took a lot of work to get them all out,” Seder said. “None of them could walk, so we had to use ropes and stretchers. They had facial and head injuries, broken bones. . . . Four of them were coherent, but two were incoherent and the other two were unconscious.”

The CHP said Biddlecomb and the driver were the only people wearing seat belts in the Bronco and were not ejected during the crash. Authorities said there was no evidence that alcohol was involved in the accident.

Camerota’s mother, Carol, said the eight friends had apparently driven to “Top of the World” on what was to be their last night out before summer vacation ended and high school classes began.

“They had been palling around all summer and I think were just trying to have one last good time out,” she said. “But it ended in this terrible way.”