Twelve-year-old killed after car goes off cliff in Santa Cruz County

Pieces of the car that went off the road and down a ditch are left scattered after a fatal accident, early Friday morning.

Two young boys are believed to have been driving on Soquel San Jose Road when they lost control and ended up at the bottom of a ravine.

“It’s not like there are accidents every day, but now and then you’ll see some horrendous accidents,” said nearby resident, Peter Kellett.

The California Highway Patrol said the car’s 12-year-old passenger died, likely on impact. The 15-year-old driver survived after making a 114-foot climb to safety. He was taken to a Bay Area hospital soon after.

A dog was also in the vehicle when it crashed. The animal has since been taken to receive medical treatment. “It took us a while to safely get the dog out. Plus, you have that very steep terrain,” said California Highway Patrol officer, Sam Courtney.

The CHP said the car collided with a large tree during the fall. Crews were able to tow the car out and realized it was stolen. Officials said no related charges have been filed against the boys. “There is still quite a bit of investigative steps we need to take as we start combing through all of our evidence,” said Courtney.

Multiple residents stopped by the scene to see what happened. Unfortunately, this is not the first time they have seen an accident like this take place in their neighborhood. “I would probably say somewhere between five and ten that I’m aware of,” said nearby resident, Brooke Valentine.

Some residents said it is time more safety precautions are installed along the road. “Some kind of burm. If they do go off they hit that and it pushes them back onto the road. There’s just one section of that up there. This is scary through here,” said Kellett.