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THREE JUVENILES were involved in an accident in a 1970 Chevy Nova, going too fast and resulting in the car hitting two trees and ripping the front end off. Photos by Jason Bross
Three juveniles were involved in a traffic accident Sunday evening, leaving two with major injuries and one with unknown injuries.
The three juveniles, all between 16 and 18 years old, were traveling westbound on North Shingle Road towards Ponderosa Road, CHP Officer Quinn Cuthbertson said.
They were going “too fast” Cuthbertson said, and lost control of the car, the rear end sliding out, “rotating into a mailbox.” The side of the car hit a tree, “ripping the front end off” of the 1970 Chevy Nova.
The male driver was wearing a seatbelt, but only the lap portion. It is unknown if the front passenger, a female, was wearing a seatbelt, but she was ejected from the car. Both suffered “major injuries,” Cuthbertson said.
The rear end of the car, detached, hit a second tree. The back passenger, a male, sustained unknown injuries, and it is unknown if he was wearing a seatbelt.
Two of the occupants were taken by helicopter to Sutter Roseville Medical Center for treatment.
The Mountain Democrat does not necessarily condone the comments here, nor does it review every post. Read our full policy
chrispytahoeMarch 08, 2013 - 8:41 am
Ban cars! ban trees!
JordanMarch 08, 2013 - 10:11 am
Oh my, teens with lap belts, hot rod, sans airbags. Never a good idea. Prayers.
JeffMarch 08, 2013 - 3:34 pm
Slow the hell down idiot. You could have killed innocent people by trying to act like a badass in your POS old car
DB SmithMarch 08, 2013 - 4:30 pm
Jeff, I'm not in anyway defending the driver but...who didn't have a POS as a teen? The comment from Jeff sounds alot like a Richard to me. Richard, you drive a Benz or could I be wrong? I thought the PofSPOTUS bought up all of the old clunkers.
ChrisMarch 08, 2013 - 7:21 pm
Jeff- Two of these kids have life threatening injuries and will also have to face law suits and fines, I am sure! Its kind of heartless to be making those kind of comments. Its a sad thing!!! Thank God no other innocent people got hurt, but I am sure the driver has enough "bad" stuff coming his way. DB was right, no need to be a Richard! My son actually knows these kids, it hits very close to home. ALL teenagers make bad choices, some worse than others, or maybe you never made bad choices?? I feel for the kids and their families and I am praying for all of them.
Old JoeMarch 08, 2013 - 7:28 pm
The kindness of people that post here at the Demo is overwhelming. Jeff, this goes out to you. I imagine most caustic personalities are the same trolls assuming a different ID. I pray for the speedy and healthy recovery of the three injured teens.
CassandraMarch 08, 2013 - 8:34 pm
Please stop with the negative and scrutinizing comments. The driver of the car and his family are all well aware of what could have happened as well as what may come in the near future. However none of that is their mane focus right now. They need the love, support, and prayers of everyone so that they may bring their kids home from the hospitals as soon as possible. Plus no one truely knows what happened asides from the three individuals in the actual accident. With that said I don't think anyone has the right to be making judgments.
AnonymousMarch 09, 2013 - 7:24 am
This is ridiculous. I go to school with all of them and I know what really happened. First of all they weren't going THAT fast at most 10 over the speed limit. The passenger is awake and says she remembers going down a windy road, but not that fast. Okay now about the kids. The driver- He has very serious injuries. At the scene I heard he started to lose his vital signs, but he was airlifted and his vitals are now stable. He was put into a medical induced coma and is now awake. He has to basically sleep for 4-6 months because he's too unstable to even move right now. He ripped open his small intestine and has a bad laceration on his colon. He has a tube in his side draining contaminated fluid. The passenger- She WAS wearing a seat belt during the accident. But she was ejected 50 feet from the car. She broke many bones in her right leg and broke her left foot. They tried so many different things to try and save her right leg, but they had to amputate from the knee down. She is awake now and is even cracking a few jokes. But all she really wants to do is get in a wheelchair and go see the driver. The kid in the back- His injuries weren't as serious as the others. He broke his hip and his jaw, and that's really it. He is back home now. They are lucky to be alive, but this was an ACCIDENT. And accidents happen.
Susie O.March 09, 2013 - 8:40 am
Thank you "Anonymous" for the story. I would like to clarify, accidents do happen, and this is tragic, but they should not have been speeding on our windy roads. Cole Mayer, the Pondo HS kids have known the whole story for a week. I'm disappointed you didn't even contact the high school, who has been counseling the kids for a week and could have given you the whole story.
James E.March 09, 2013 - 10:50 am
I'm interested in the term "accidents happen." As an Army aviator I've served on several aviation accident boards. After an aircraft crashes, the term "accidents happen" cannot be accepted as the details must be examined in order to gain the knowledge need to prevent future accidents. The aviator, the aircraft, weather conditions, are all minutely examined and all details are recorded to make a permanent record. The old Army joke is when you are an accident investigator and arrive at the crash scene, you take one quick look and proclaim pilot error and go home. The joke has no relation to reality. However, nevertheless, after extensive review of all the factors the result is often pilot error, not mechanical, or weather. Those first on the scene often make rash conclusions and that's why accident boards are necessary so lessons can be learned in the hope of preventing future accidents. I have one experience on the other side of the coin. I was flying out of Fort Ord and enjoyed a nice flight over Carmel, Carmel Valley, and the mountains separating Carmel Valley and the Salinas valley. Having reached the Salinas valley after flying all over those mountains, I heard an explosion and lost power. I landed right aside a row of lettuce. I got out and could see the engine block had split (OH-13) which was not conducive to powered flight. The Post Maintenance Officer arrived and took one look and proclaimed PILOT ERROR. Even thought I was a captain and he was a lieutenant colonel I laughed and told him good try. You see it was in his interest to not have a "maintenance" accident. The Investigation Board quickly arrived and concluded that I could not have flown the aircraft sitting on the engine on the rear of the aircraft and therefore could not have cracked the block. So "accidents happen" did not apply, as in this case it was caused by equipment failure. Accidents never just happen, there is always a cause. Take your pick: person, equipment, or weather. Let me know if I left a factor out.
CherylMarch 09, 2013 - 10:58 am
Anonymous, I'm am sure you are deeply worried about your friends, but really, only 10 mph over speed limit? Girl ejected 50 feet even though wearing a seat belt, what is the speed limit on this road if only 10 mph over speed limit would throw someone that far? Most of us have made mistakes behind the wheel, and learned from them. Hopefully this driver will as well. I just pray all involved will recover.
seMarch 09, 2013 - 5:31 pm
I feel bad for all involved and wish them a speedy recovery. But saying they were traveling 10mph over the speed limit is a blatant lie. Ive driven by the accident scene every day for years. They had to be going close to 100mph.
KMarch 09, 2013 - 5:41 pm
i drive this road everyday. the normal speed everyone drives is around 60mph (10 over the speed limit) and there is NO WAY that an accident like this happened at that speed. plus there is no way an old steel muscle car like this would split in half if they were really only driving 10 over the limit.
GYApril 18, 2013 - 11:44 am
Anyone who knows anything about 1968-74 Chevrolet Autos Nova included Knows that the car has a separate front suspension clip, not a solid unibody frame like they make now! this was so that on impact the front would split and take the damage and if the rear of the car was ok the owner could replace the front end easier. Hope this clears up the reason the car split, the tree impacted the exact point of the front clip,