ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST — A young woman was injured and a young man believed dead after their car plunged hundreds of feet over the side of Glendora Ridge Road Friday in the forest north of San Dimas and caught fire, authorities said.
The crash was first reported about 12:30 a.m. on Glendora Ridge Road between Glendora Mountain and Mt. Baldy roads, Los Angeles County sheriff’s Lt. Andy Berg said. A caller used a nearby pay phone to report seeing a fire and possible car crash.
“An unidentified driver was driving a Toyota Scion XB, traveling westbound on Glendora Ridge Road, west of Mount Baldy Road, at an undetermined speed,” California Highway Patrol Officer Rodrigo Jimenez said in a written statement. “The vehicle veered to the right, left the roadway, and struck a dirt embankment before rolling down the hillside.”
Rescuers arrived at the scene to find an injured 19-year-old San Juan Capistrano woman who had managed to crawl free from the mangled vehicle, according to sheriff’s and California Highway Patrol officials. She told officials that a her friend, a young man of about the same age, was still inside the car.
The woman was flown to a hospital by helicopter for treatment, Berg said. An update on her condition was not available.
The crash touched off a small brush fire where it came to a rest more than 600 feet over the side of the road, Berg said. Firefighters extinguished the flames with the use of a water-dropping helicopter.
Officials discovered burned human remains inside the car just before 7:30 a.m. and summoned coroner’s investigators to the scene, California Highway Patrol Officer Ed Jacobs said. The body was believed to be that of the driver.
The CHP is investigating the crash, with help from sheriff’s search and rescue team members equipped to access the rugged terrain, officials said.