The ten teenagers and 18-month-old baby who were in a crammed SUV when the 15-year-old girl driving it lost control and it flipped over in Long Island on Friday have been named.
Three of the youngsters were killed. They are Herbert Leo Aviles Maravilla, 16, Marlon Carbajal, 15, and David Sanchez, 13.
Cindy Sanchez, 15, was driving the SUV which had been reported stolen on Thursday. She is in hospital with minor injuries along with five others and an 18-month-old who was also in the car.
Diego Aviles Maravilla, 15, Mayela Flores, 15, Kevin Robles, 16, Lisbeth Menjivar, 16, Walter Ochoa, 17, and 18-month-old Gael Sanchez, 18 months, all suffered minor injuries.
Investigators work at the scene of the crash where three teenagers died on Friday. The stolen SUV had 10 people inside, including an 18-month-old baby, when it flipped several times after its 15-year-old female driver lost control
An investigator holds up what looks like a shirt belonging to one of the victims of Friday’s crash
Police have not yet indicated what charges Sanchez may face. On Friday, they said they were questioning her in hospital.
The 10 kids were all crammed into the 2005 Chevy TrailBlazer when Sanchez lost control on the Meadowbrook State Parkway near Merrick.
The car flipped several times before it finally came to a stop on the side of the road.
The three teens who died were all thrown from the car as it rolled. The 18-month-old is believed to have been in a car seat.
Moments before the crash, witnesses described the SUV overtaking other vehicles on the road and swerving.
The car eventually rolled upright after flipping several times into the bushes by the side of the highway
Before losing control and flipping off to the side of the highway, witnesses said the SUV was speeding and overtaking other cars
Sanchez was speeding at the time though it is not known exactly how fast she was going.
The speed limit on the road is 55 mph.
‘We have witness statements that reported that the vehicle was traveling at a high rate of speed and driving erratically.
‘One witness traveling in the same direction said it came up behind him and swerved around him before the crash,’ State Police Maj. David Candelaria told New York Daily News on Friday.
As they worked through the wreckage on Friday, one investigator was seen holding up what looked like one of the youngster’s shirts.
None of their families have yet spoken out.