West Los Angeles: 3 Inland residents killed in fiery wreck

UPDATE: 07/31/2016 5:40 p.m. With clarification regarding one of the unidentified deceased victims.

 

WEST LOS ANGELES – Three residents from the Inland Empire died and a fourth was seriously injured in a solo vehicle traffic collision Saturday, July 30. The deadly accident happened at 7:50 a.m. when a car the four were in failed to negotiate a curve and left the roadway. The fatal accident occurred just to the east of the Los Angeles International Airport.

After losing control, the car veered off the roadway and went down a dirt embankment where the vehicle smashed into a concrete column and burst into flames, according to a California Highway Patrol official.

The accident was reported to CHP emergency dispatchers  by numerous 911 callers who reported the single-vehicle traffic collision. Callers reported the vehicle, that was described as a 2008 Toyota Scion XB, was on its’ side and on fire near the Century Boulevard collector road to the southbound I-405 freeway.

The Scion, driven by Aldo Noe Acosta Verdin, 19, of Moreno Valley, “was approaching a curve at the end of the collector road that leads traffic back onto I-405 southbound,” CHP Officer S. Rezai explained. “For an unknown reason Verdin…failed to navigate the curve in the roadway.”

The Scion then “veered off the roadway into the dirt embankment and straight towards the concrete column that holds the transition road of I-405 southbound to I-105 westbound,” according to Rezai.

“(The Scions’) front end collided with the concrete column, which forced the rear end of the vehicle upward in a counter-clockwise manner,” Rezai explained. “The Scion then came to rest with its’ roof laying flat against the concrete column and the front end pointing downward towards the ground.”

Verdin, who was not wearing a seatbelt according to Rezai, succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.

According to a CHP report, Jane Doe #2, who was also pronounced dead at the scene, is listed as a 24-year-old woman from San Bernardino. However, some friends of that victim have claimed the unidentified female listed as Jane Doe #2 was actually Kiara Quilo, a 16-year-old girl from Moreno Valley.

As of Wednesday, Aug 3, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner’s office had not updated any information about Jane Doe #2’s actual age, city of residence, or identity. It was not immediately known why the CHP report listed her as a 24-year-old adult from San Bernardino.  (See CHP report below.)

A listing of those injured or killed in the fatal traffic accident in a report from California Highway Patrol

Nicole Hache, 16, of Moreno Valley – initially listed as Jane Doe#1 and later identified by Coroner officials – suffered critical injuries. A third passenger, identified as Devin Armani Thomas, 19, of Moreno Valley, suffered major injuries, according to Rezai. Both were transported by ground ambulances to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center for further treatment.

Hache later succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced dead by hospital staff.

According to Panchal, Hache also died from blunt force trauma and thermal burns. It was not known if she or any of the three passengers were wearing seatbelts at the time of the accident.

The cause of the crash is still under investigation. However, speed is believed to have been a factor, according to Rezai.

The I-405 southbound to Century Boulevard Collector Road was closed for about four hours while CHP officers conducted an accident investigation. All lanes were re-opened at about noon, according to Rezai.

Any witnesses to this traffic collision or anyone with additional information regarding this fatal accident is encouraged to contact CHP Officer S. Rezai at the CHP’s West Los Angeles Office at (310) 642-3939.

A vigil will be held at Valley View High School Wednesday, Aug. 3 to honor the lives of the students from that school who died in this tragic accident. Valley View HS is located at 13135 Nason St in Moreno Valley. (951) 571-4850

 

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