Update: Officials released new details on the crash, including the ages of the victims, on Sunday. An updated story is here.
One died and four others were injured after their vehicle crashed into a tree on a dark road in Orange County’s Santiago Canyon early Saturday, authorities said.
The incident happened around 2:45 a.m. in the area of Santiago Canyon and Haul roads in an unincorporated community in Silverado, according to the O.C. Fire Authority.
A Honda Accord with five occupants was traveling at high speeds when it slammed into an oak tree, Battalion Chief Craig Covey told KTLA. The impact was so strong that crews had to pry apart the vehicle from the tree to pull the driver out, Covey said.
The driver died at the scene. The other occupants, three who suffered critical injuries and one who sustained moderate injuries, were transported to the hospital, Covey said. He described the victims as one woman and three men around 18 to 20 years old.
With no street lights in the area, the road was “pitch black,” the battalion chief said.
Officials provided no further details.