La Palma : Hit-Run Driver Clips Car: 1 Killed, 4 Hurt

A La Palma woman was killed and four passengers in her car were injured when a hit-run driver struck their compact car on the Artesia Freeway in Long Beach, authorities said Thursday.

Renee Mi Yoon, 19, was pronounced dead at the scene late Wednesday night, CHP officer Robert Messing said, after the 1987 red Hyundai she was driving ran head on into the freeway’s center divider after being struck by a light blue van whose driver did not stop after the collision.

Passenger Jink Jung Suh, 19, of Norwalk, was ejected through the front windshield and taken to Long Beach Memorial Hospital with major head injuries.

Yoon’s 21-year-old sister, Hee Chung Yoon, also of La Palma, was in the passenger seat of Yoon’s car and suffered a broken leg. She was treated at St. Mary’s Hospital in Long Beach and released, Messing said.

Also taken to St. Mary’s were passengers Helen Hye Han, 18, of Buena Park, who was treated for a broken right ankle; and Sung Hwa Jennie Han, 19, of Cypress, who was treated for minor injuries.

The CHP officer said Yoon was eastbound on the freeway near Cherry Avenue about 11:30 p.m. when the van, traveling in a lane next to the Hyundai, struck the front of Yoon’s car when it cut in front.

The Hyundai skidded across two traffic lanes and struck a 1983 Toyota before hitting the center divider, Messing said. The Toyota spun out in the highway before halting on the shoulder.

Young Ah Kim, 18, of Paramount, the driver of the Toyota, and her passenger, 25-year-old Unjoo Ku, also of Paramount, were not injured. The two women are acquaintances of Yoon and her friends, Messing said.

Witnesses driving in the area told officials that the van had a California license plate with a partial number of 748, Messing said, and had slight damage on the right rear side. It was last seen heading eastbound on the Artesia Freeway.