Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station deputies are investigating a fiery fatal crash that happened around 9:30 p.m. Thursday in Valencia, according to officials.
As of Friday evening, the decedent’s identity has not yet been released by the L.A. County coroner’s office, pending the procedures for their next-of-kin notification.
A crowd gathered Friday at the scene of the crash on Valencia Boulevard, across the street from College of the Canyons, to honor the person who died. Mourners comforted one another and flowers were laid in front of the tree where the vehicle made impact during the collision.
A white, four-door sedan was traveling westbound on Valencia Boulevard, heading toward Interstate 5, where it crashed into a tree on the north side of the road, according to Lt. Luis Molina of the SCV Sheriff’s Station. The car burst into flames following the crash.
“As of right now, the only cause of collision, based on the witnesses, is speed,” said Sgt. Mark Perkins of the SCV Sheriff’s Station Traffic Unit.
No witnesses have said there was any other vehicle involved in the crash, he added.
Fire officials were still on the scene as of about 10:15 p.m. Thursday, according to Supervisor Michael Pickett of the L.A. County Fire Department, who reported that no one was taken to the hospital from the crash site.
Sheriff’s officials said the initial indication is that there was only one person in the car at the time of the crash and no other vehicles appeared to be involved in the crash, although Molina indicated the cause was still under investigation.
Deputies had restricted traffic on the westbound lanes of Valencia Boulevard with a barricade set up by a pair of patrol vehicles while the crash site was under investigation late Thursday evening.
No information regarding the decedent’s identity, including approximate age or gender, was immediately available.
Lucas Nava and Katherine Quezada contributed to this report.
