40 Beer Cans at Crash Site : Accident: CHP tries to pinpoint cause of weekend wreck that claimed lives of 4 teens.

Investigators found more than 40 empty beer cans strewn about the wreckage of a Chevrolet Suburban that crashed over the weekend near Victorville, killing four Orange County teen-agers, authorities said Monday.

“We’re going back over everything trying to put the puzzle together,” said Bill Rippengale, one of four California Highway Patrol officers investigating the crash.

The investigators plan to take the case to the San Bernardino County district attorney’s office today for possible charges against the 17-year-old driver, a CHP spokesman said.

The youth, a student at Katella High School in Anaheim, is being held at San Bernardino County Juvenile Hall on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol and felony vehicular manslaughter.

The fatal accident occurred about 6:20 a.m. Saturday as the driver and seven of his schoolmates were returning along an isolated dirt road near Victorville from an overnight desert camp-out.

A preliminary investigation indicated the teen-ager lost control of the Suburban at a bend in the road before veering off into the desert, skidding about 100 feet and hitting a bump that caused the car to flip over and roll at least six times, Rippengale said.

The driver told police that he’d been traveling about 45 miles per hour.

A tow truck operator whose company was called to the scene later disputed that, estimating the speed at closer to 70, based on the damage the car sustained.

“We’ve seen enough rollovers to know that this one was going well over 45,” said Kelly Crawford, owner of Kelly’s Towing in nearby Apple Valley. “This was the worst accident we’ve seen.”

Upon arriving at the scene, Crawford said, his driver found an ice chest, cooler and dozens of empty beer cans scattered within a 50-yard radius of the wreckage. One of the vehicle’s sides was smashed in and a door was missing. “It was a total loss,” Crawford said. “The passenger side was completely caved in at a 45-degree angle.”

As the car rolled over, five of its eight occupants--ages 16 through 18--were ejected onto the sand, CHP investigators said. Two who remained in their seats were dead at the scene, while a third died a few hours later and a fourth the next day. Three other youths were injured but are expected to recover. Only the driver--who police say was found walking around in a daze--escaped serious injury.

On Monday, some of the victims’ families, still in a daze themselves, were planning a group memorial for their sons, possibly as early as Friday.

“This isn’t just for 10 kids, it’s for 400 kids,” said Cindy Bender, whose son, Stephen, died in the crash. “The message needs to be conveyed to the community; when you’re behind the wheel, you need to have it all together.”

Out in the desert, a memorial of another sort had already been erected. There, near the spot where the accident occurred, friends of the dead boys had set up a makeshift cross adorned with bits of rubber and glass still left in the sand. They had scratched handwritten messages to the companions they would never again see.

“We will miss you guys,” one inscription read. “Rest in Peace.”

Desert Deaths

An investigation continues into the crash that killed four Anaheim teen-agers and injured three others Saturday near Apple Valley. What authorities have pieced together so far:

Stoddard Wells Road

Chevy Suburban

100 feet

65 feet

30 feet

1) Traveling west in Chevy Suburban at unsafe speed, driver loses control

2) Suburban swerves twice, then veers off road

3) After skidding about 100 feet, Suburban hits bump

4) Vehicle flips over several times, ejecting five of seven occupants

5) Suburban lands upright

Source: California Highway Patrol