3 killed when SUV slams into wall, bursts into flames in Boyle Heights

LOS ANGELES – A crash on the 5 Freeway claimed the lives of three people in Boyle Heights early Sunday morning.

According to the California Highway Patrol, the collision occurred just after 2:45 a.m. on the northbound on and off-ramps of the 5 at Calzona Street and involved a single black SUV.

The car appeared to have slammed into a wall on the ramp and caught fire near a home adjacent to the freeway entrance. It was facing the wrong direction on the on-ramp, authorities said.

  • 3 dead in solo-vehicle collision on 5 Freeway in Boyle Heights 
    According to CHP officials, the collision occurred just after 2:45 a.m. on the northbound on- and off-ramps of the 5 at Calzona Street and involved a single black SUV. Feb. 25, 2024. (KTLA)
  • 3 dead in solo-vehicle collision on 5 Freeway in Boyle Heights 
    According to CHP officials, the collision occurred just after 2:45 a.m. on the northbound on- and off-ramps of the 5 at Calzona Street and involved a single black SUV. Feb. 25, 2024. (KTLA)
  • 3 dead in solo-vehicle collision on 5 Freeway in Boyle Heights 
    According to CHP officials, the collision occurred just after 2:45 a.m. on the northbound on- and off-ramps of the 5 at Calzona Street and involved a single black SUV. Feb. 25, 2024. (KTLA)

Los Angeles Fire Department crews arrived and extinguished the flames before they spread to the home and nearby trees.

Three people were pronounced dead at the scene, a CHP official confirmed to KTLA 5’s Erin Myers.

No information on their identities was immediately released.

A SigAlert was issued for the Calzona Street off-ramp at 3:15 a.m. Sunday and is expected to last at least three hours.

The initial cause of the crash remains under investigation.

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