Los Angeles multi-vehicle crash: Fiery collision leaves five dead and eight injured

Authorities in the Los Angeles community of Windsor Hills reported that a terrible multi-car collision on Thursday, 4 July, claimed the lives of five people, including a pregnant mother and an infant. The collision between La Brea and Slauson Avenues also resulted in eight injuries.

According to officials of the California Highway Patrol, three persons, including a pregnant woman and a 3-year-old child, perished in the fiery catastrophe.

According to Officer Franco Pepi, a CHP spokesperson, "unique circumstances" have caused the pregnant woman's unborn child to be counted as the fifth fatality.

Pepi also claimed that when the vehicles were blazing, authorities discovered another person's remains inside later on Thursday. The age and gender of the person are not yet confirmed.

Speaking of the other eight people who were hurt in the incident, they were driven and treated to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center by the authorities. Six of those hurt were teenagers, and one of them had serious wounds.

---

The collision was recorded in surveillance footage in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Windsor Hills intersection around 1:40 pm

This was 10 miles southwest of downtown Los Angeles. According to the CHP, the chain of events began when a grey Mercedes-Benz ran a red light at Slauson and La Brea and crashed into a light pole, where it came to rest. Sources revealed that nearly six vehicles were hit, and several of them caught fire.

The Mercedes driver Debra Jackson was severely injured but managed to escape the collision and was transported to a local hospital in Los Angeles. She described the situation:

"All of a sudden, I heard a big explosion, but as I was trying to turn around, the flames just went over everybody," said Jackson. "The flames went over my whole car and they told me to jump out of my car...because I was trying to get out of my car, to go to the gas pump. And I jumped out of my car and just left my car sitting right there."

A woman named Veronica Esquivel witnessed the incident while filling up at a neighboring gas station. She said:

"I hear all of the noises from all of the collisions, and then the fire explosion and I saw things, metal and things flying in the air. So, I just covered myself behind the pump."

Reportedly, a fire blaze burned to the ground following the collision. From a great distance, smoke was visible billowing.

According to a CHP spokesperson, the Mercedes was traveling "at high speed" and blew a red light while traveling southbound on La Brea. The exact reason for the incident was not immediately known.