An 11th-grade student at El Dorado High School died and four other people were injured in a two-vehicle crash just south of El Dorado High School in Placentia on Tuesday morning, June 4, authorities said.
Placentia police were called to Yorba Linda Boulevard and Valencia Avenue just past 8:15 a.m. and found the teenage driver trapped in his vehicle, while another boy in the passenger seat had gotten out under his own power, Sgt. Joe Connell said.
A 39-year-old woman was driving the other vehicle and had a boy and a girl in the car with her, Connell said.
The teenage driver sustained major injuries in the crash, Connell said. Firefighters extricated him from the vehicle and he was taken to a hospital, but he died.
The other four were also hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries, the sergeant said.
The teenage driver was of driving age and had a valid license, Connell said. Based on the time and location of the crash, it was believed he and his passenger were headed to school.
Drugs and alcohol were not believed to be factors in the crash, Connell said. Police interviewed witnesses, but the cause and circumstances leading up to the crash were not yet known.
Zachary Blake Henn, who was 17, and lived in Yorba Linda, was killed in Tuesday morning’s crash, according to the Orange County Coroner-Sheriff’s Department. He was known as Zach.
Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District officials confirmed Zach was a student at El Dorado High.
“Our entire school district is overwhelmed with grief beyond words,” Superintendent Alex Cherniss said in a statement. “During this incredibly challenging time, we ask for your compassion in respecting the privacy of our student’s loved ones, and to keep them in your thoughts and prayers.”
Additional support staff and counselors were sent to the El Dorado campus and other schools following the crash.
Anyone with information regarding the crash should contact Placentia Police at 714-993-8157.
City News Service contributed to this report.
