Three Highway Heroes Deserve Praise : Yorba Linda Men, Friend Saved Child in Fiery Crash, Found Suspected Drunk Driver

Two 20-year-olds from Yorba Linda and their 19-year-old friend from Downey have reason to feel especially good this summer, and by their actions have called attention to highway safety during a season when many are on the road. They went above and beyond the call of duty recently when, on one evening just before midnight, they saw a crash on the freeway. They deserve the admiration and praise they have received.

Lee Page and Stan Maloof of Yorba Linda, with Shawn Veith of Downey, were driving on the Moreno Valley Freeway en route to playing blackjack at a casino near Palm Springs.

A pickup truck passed them and rear-ended a sedan, which exploded into flames. Two toddlers, four other children and two adults died in the horrific accident. Compounding the tragedy was the fact that it was caused by an allegedly drunk motorist who at least twice before had been convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol.

Page, Maloof and Veith pulled over when they saw the crash. While his friends used their cellular telephone to call police, Maloof bravely rushed to the burning car. The fire was made worse by leaking gasoline; the gas tank did not have a cap and the sedan was packed with 11 people. Despite the flames and the danger, he helped carry a 5-year-old to safety and tried to pull a burning man from the car, stopping only when police and fire crews arrived.

Maloof, Page and Veith got back in their car and drove off, but soon saw the pickup allegedly involved in the crash. It was stopped alongside the freeway and the driver was just getting out. The three men called police from a freeway call box and then started chasing the driver. They pursued him down the freeway and along an off-ramp. They spotted him behind a restaurant and pointed him out to police. Said a Banning police officer: “They became the eyes and ears of the Police Department.” Another police officer doubted that the driver would have been arrested without the trio’s help.

At a time when many are reluctant to get involved, the three young men deserve thanks for their heroic actions. They helped save the life of the 5-year-old and, by getting the alleged drunk driver off the road, perhaps more lives. The attention they have received for their fine efforts is fitting.