Teen Dead, 3 Others Injured In Crash Near Central Valley High School
CERES (CBS13) — One person was killed and others were injured near Central Valley High School Wednesday afternoon. Investigators have pieced together what led up to the crash.
Ceres police say the crash happened in the area of Blaker Road near Service Road around 3 p.m., just 15 minutes after school got out.
Investigators believe one of the vehicles was trying to overtake another one when it lost control, hit a power pole and a tree on the east side of Blaker Road. One passenger, believed to be a 17-year-old male, was ejected from the vehicle and pronounced dead at the scene.
Three other passengers, a 16-year-old male and two 17-year-old males, had to be extricated from the vehicle and were transported to area hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries.
Investigators say speed appeared to be a factor in the collision. It's unclear if drugs or alcohol were a factor.
The identities of the passengers have not yet been released. Officials said all four are students of Central Valley High School.
An eyewitness told CBS13 two cars were drag racing on the country road when their car flipped and hit a tree.
"I heard their motors when they started hitting their engines at the canal right there I hear rmmm, rmmm and I see the were coming-both of them," said Francisco Garcia.
Garcia says he looked outside just in time to catch two cars racing down Blaker road near Central Valley High. He says both cars jockeyed for position before one hit a patch of dirt.
"It just grabbed the dirt and you could see it come right up and he lost control and hit the pole," said Garcia.
That car flipped and ended up in a tree. The other kept going, says Garcia who rushed to help the people inside the car that crashed. He says the two teens in the front were wearing seatbelts and the two in the back were not.
Ceres police said the Every 15 Minutes program, which had been scheduled to take place at Ceres High School Thursday morning, has been canceled due to the crash. It will not be rescheduled this year.
