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Fatal drive-thru crash: A teen driver lost control of his car and plowed into a burger joint in Highland Park.

A 52-year-old woman was killed in a bizarre car accident Saturday when a teen driver crashed his car through a wall into a Highland Park hamburger joint.

•  A 19-year-old driver lost control of his car and crashed through the wall of Troy’s Burgers in Highland Park

•  One woman was killed; three others were injured

•  Surveillance video caught the entire accident on tape (see it on YouTube)

The fatal drive-thru crash occurred at around 4:20 p.m., according to CBS Channel 12 News.

Police said Martha Pena was eating dinner with her family at Troy’s Burgers on York Boulevard at Armadale Avenue when a 19-year-old driver, whose identity has not been released, lost control of his car and plowed through the wall of the restaurant.

The car apparently veered out of control in the intersection, jumped the curb, and then slid across the street and crashed into the restaurant, ABC News reported. Pena was killed and three others were injured.

Surveillance video released by authorities shows the family sitting very calmly when the sudden, violent crash occurred. The car smashed through the wall, hitting Pena and others, and then slammed into the restaurant counter, where it stopped.

The video shows the car landing on some people while others frantically try to get out of the way. After the vehicle came to a stop, the video shows patrons trying to get up and assist others.

The driver is seen getting out of his car and scrambling around the restaurant, trying to help a victim. He appears to be distraught and panicked.

The video also shows police officers subjecting the teen driver to a field sobriety test in front of the restaurant, after the accident. Investigators said he passed the test and had not been charged as of Sunday. He allegedly told police he didn’t remember what happened.

(The video contains footage that might be disturbing to some viewers: See the entire surveillance video on YouTube.)

Renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman and the Blackman Legal Group have been representing car accident injury victims for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

A woman was killed and three people were injured in a rush-hour pileup on Interstate 10 at Crenshaw Boulevard. (Top photo: Fox News | Bottom photo: Los Angeles Times)

All westbound lanes of the Santa Monica Freeway (Interstate 10) were closed for more than four hours during the Monday morning rush hour after a fiery car accident killed one person and injured three others.

•   Chain-reaction crash on I-10 started when one car crashed into the center divider and spun around to face the wrong way in the fast lane

•   Five cars were involved; one was engulfed in flames

•   It took firefighters three hours to free one driver’s body from her car; she died at the scene

•   I-10 — one of the busiest freeways in the area — was completely shut down for almost four hours during the morning rush hour

The freeway accident was reported at 4:46 a.m., according to a report in the Los Angeles Daily News.

Investigators are still trying to determine exactly what caused the fatal chain-reaction crash near Crenshaw Boulevard. California Highway Patrol Officer Anthony Martin said the chain reaction apparently started when one car crashed into the median in the early-morning darkness and ended up facing the wrong way in the fast lane.

Martin said a 1998 Plymouth Breeze driven by a 54-year-old woman from Bell suddenly swerved to the left from the number two lane and smashed into the center divider. The Plymouth ended up facing the wrong way in the number-one lane.

A Ford Explorer then crashed head-on into the Plymouth, triggering a multi-vehicle pileup. A KTLA News report stated that at least five cars were involved in the chain-reaction crash. One vehicle was engulfed in flames, but it authorities did not say which vehicle.

Rescue workers from the Los Angeles Fire Department had to cut the driver of the Plymouth from her mangled vehicle. It took them nearly three hours to free her body from the wreckage, according to the KTLA report. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Officials did not release her identity

Three other people were injured in the crash. Two of them sustained major injuries and the other one’s injuries were described as minor by fire department spokesman Brian Humphrey.

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have been representing catastrophic injury victims for 35 years.  The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

A Metrolink train crashed into a freight train in 2008, killing 25 people and injuring 135.

The federal government is granting Metrolink $6.6 million to purchase new safety equipment that will prevent commuter train crashes, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced Wednesday.

•  Metrolink  received $6.6 million to add GPS collision-avoidance equipment to its cars

•  The crash-prevention systems are part of a $200 million safety overhaul

•  Metrolink will be the first rail system in the nation to outfit cars with the new equipment, which is mandated for all U.S. trains by 2015

The equipment is badly needed for the trains that connect the inland region with the rest of Southern California. Metrolink was responsible for 64 percent of all rail fatalities in the U.S. as recently as two years ago, according to a report on the Redlands Daily Facts news site.

In 2008, a Metrolink engineer ran a red light and the train crashed into a Union Pacific freight train in Chatsworth, causing 25 deaths; 135 people sustained major injuries. It was the worst train crash in at least 40 years. The same year, another Metrolink train sideswiped a Burlington Northern Santa Fe freight in Rialto, injuring four people.

Metrolink’s new state-of-the-art collision avoidance equipment — Positive Train Control – is a geographic positioning system (GPS) that can automatically stop a train if it enters a wrong track, starts going too fast, or is in danger of a collision. The $6.6 million grant to pay for it comes from new Railroad Safety Technology Grant program.

It’s part of a $200 million safety overhaul that includes 20 new safety-enhanced Hyundai Rotem rail cars, according to Metrolink spokeswoman Sherita Coffelt. The new cars feature crush zones that absorb impact at each end of the car, Coffelt said. They have “enhanced bumpers to absorb, balance and dissipate force in case of a collision, couplers that absorb energy to help keep cars in line and upright, reconfigured seat placement in each car; and inward- and outward- facing video cameras,” the Daily Facts report states.

Metrolink will be the first train system in the country with the new safety cars. All U.S. passenger and freight rail systems must be fully outfitted with collision avoidance systems by 2015.

Renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman and the Blackman Legal Group have been representing injury victims for 35 years. They have special expertise in cases involving train accidents. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

“Dirty Dancing” star Jennifer Grey said no to “Dancing With the Stars” several times before this season because she never fully recovered from a neck injury she sustained in a fatal car accident 23 years ago.

• Jennifer Gray suffered a catastrophic neck injury in a fatal car crash with Matthew Broderick in 1987

• Before her appearance on “Dancing With the Stars” this season, doctors discovered Grey still had serious neck damage

• Grey had four neck surgeries in 2010, including one to stabilize it by inserting a titanium plate

The accident happened on August 5, 1987, when Grey and her then-boyfriend, actor Matthew Broderick, were vacationing in Northern Ireland. Broderick was driving a rented BMW and veered into the wrong lane, crashing head-on into a car driven by a 30-year-old woman and her mother.

The woman and her mother both died. Broderick was hospitalized for four weeks with a fractured leg and ribs, a collapsed lung and a concussion. Grey sustained a catastrophic neck injury.

“The collision was so intense that the ligaments were ripped from the back of my neck,” Grey said on “Good Morning America. ”I would have a headache for four days where I could barely open my eyes.”

The injury was emotionally devastating as well. “Dirty Dancing” was released just days after the accident. Grey was so traumatized by the fatal crash that her sudden fame from the movie only added to her stress.

“The juxtaposition of that deep sorrow, the survivor’s guilt, and then being celebrated as the new big thing just didn’t jibe,” Grey told People magazine. “It didn’t feel good to be the toast of the town.”

When Grey decided to appear on “Dancing With the Stars,” she had a physical and doctors discovered that she still had serious neck damage from the car accident, according to ABC News. She had to undergo surgery to place a titanium plate in her neck.

“Her head was falling off forward,” Dr. Robert Bray, her neurologic spine surgeon, said. “She had a 30-degree angulation of her neck.”

Bray said Grey had four neck surgeries this year alone. During the show, she suffered chronic pain in her neck and back. Like many performers and athletes, Grey was highly motivated to push on in spite of the pain. But her experience is dramatic proof that a neck injury sustained in a car accident can severely alter a person’s life for decades.

For more than 35 years, renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman and his colleagues at California-based Blackman Legal Group have successfully represented people who have suffered catastrophic injuries in motor vehicle accidents.  The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

A 2-year-old boy’s slip-and-fall death at Staples Center on Sunday was an accident, the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office said Tuesday.

• A 2-year-old boy fell over the edge of a luxury skybox suite at Staples Center after the basketball game Sunday night

•  The toddler sustained catastrophic injuries and died at the hospital two hours later

•  After an autopsy to rule out foul play, the county coroner said the death was accidental

The slip and fall accident occurred at about 9:15 p.m., according to the Orange County Register.

Lucas Anthony Tang of Garden Grove apparently slipped and fell 30 feet from a luxury skybox suite to the hard plastic seats below after the Los Angeles Lakers’ victory over the Golden state Warriors.

The little boy’s family and other guests in the luxury suite were taking photographs after the game when the toddler somehow fell over the safety-glass barrier embedded in concrete in front of the skybox.

The toddler sustained catastrophic head injuries. He was rushed to County-USC Medical Center, where he died at about 11:40 p.m., the coroner’s office said.

An autopsy was performed on Tuesday to ascertain whether the toddler’s death was accidental. The coroner’s office ruled that Tang died of multiple traumatic injuries as a result of the fall, that his death was an accident, and that there was no foul play involved.

The Los Angeles Police Department’s juvenile division is investigating the incident, as is their routine protocol for all sudden deaths of children under 11, Officer Julie Sohn told the Associated Press.

Staples Center spokesman Michael Roth said no accidents like that have occurred in the 11-year history of the arena. Roth said the safety barrier consists of 16-inch-high concrete topped by glass ranging in height from 10 inches in front of the seats to 26 inches near steps.

Authorities are asking anyone with information about the incident to call juvenile division detectives at 1-877-527-3247.

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have been representing cases involving slip and fall injuries and fatalities for 35 years.  The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

A head-on collision between a truck and a minivan killed two people Tuesday in Gorman.

Two people were killed in a head-on collision Tuesday when a minivan slammed into a fire truck carrying 12 state prison fire crew inmates on Highway 138 in Gorman.

•  Subaru Forester crossed a double-yellow line on Highway 138 near Gorman and crashed into a fire truck carrying a crew of state prison inmates

•  The truck rolled several times and some of the inmates were thrown onto the road

•  The driver of the Subaru and one of the inmates died at the scene

•  At least three other inmates were airlifted to trauma centers in critical condition; five others were transported to hospitals with serious injuries

The fire truck accident occurred at about 2:15 p.m., according to an ABC News report.

The truck carrying state prison inmates who work on Los Angeles County fire crews was traveling west on Highway 138 near Gorman when an eastbound Subaru Forester, driven by an elderly man, crossed the yellow line into oncoming traffic and crashed head-on into the truck. The force of impact caused the truck to roll several times, throwing some of the inmates out of the truck and onto the roadway.

“Some of the [fire crew] members were ejected, and some trapped inside,” Fire Inspector Matt Levesque told the Los Angeles Times.

The driver of the Subaru and one of the inmates were pronounced dead at the scene. Three inmates sustained catastrophic injuries and were airlifted to trauma centers in critical condition. At least five others suffered serious injuries and were taken by air or ground transport to hospitals.

California Highway Patrol accident investigators were at the scene late Tuesday, examining the wreckage and interviewing witnesses to try to determine exactly what caused the highway crash.

None of the victims’ identities was released as of Tuesday evening.

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented people injured in highway crashes for 35 years.  The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

"LA Ink" star Kat Von D lost her Hollywood Hills home and her beloved cat in a fire Sunday night. (Photo: Twitter)

“LA Ink” reality star Kat Von D lost more than her home Sunday night when a fire ripped through her Hollywood Hills house. Her beloved hairless cat, Valentine, was killed in the blaze.

•  Famous reality-show tattoo artist Kat Von D was in Canada on a promotional book tour when her Hollywood Hills home burned Sunday night

•  Von D’s cherished hairless cat was inside and perished in the fire

•  Los Angeles Fire Department officials are investigating the cause of the fire

The Los Angeles Fire Department arrived on the scene at 11:23 p.m., the celebrity news site Us Magazine confirmed.

“Firefighters encountered heavy fire with extreme smoke but they were able to get a knock down on the fire,” Fire department captain Stephen Ruda told Us.  ”There was no one home.”

The famous tattoo artist, whose real name is Katherine von Drachenberg, was in Canada promoting her new book, The Tattoo Chronicles, when her house burst into flames.

She returned to her charred home after the fire and took a photo, which she posted on Twitter (see photo at left).

“My house burned down last night with my cat inside,” she tweeted. “In order to gain everything, you must lose everything…R.I.P. My little Valentine.”

Von D said she would continue her international book tour in spite of the tragedy.

“I’m not canceling the rest of the booktour,” she tweeted. ” Thank you all for comforting words … Means so much. ? ”

The 28-year-old, whose boyfriend is Oscar-winner Sandra Bullock’s ex-husband Jesse James, was headed to Toronto on Tuesday and then across the Atlantic to several stops in Europe, she said.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, fire officials said.

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented clients in cases involving fire loss since 1976. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

PG&E could face a $16.5 million fine for a 2008 Rancho Cordova pipeline explosion. (Photo: Sacramento Bee)

PG&E may have to pay a fine of up to $16.5 million for a 2008 gas pipeline explosion that damaged several homes and killed a 72-year-old man in Rancho Cordova, the California Public Utilities Commision (CPUC) said Friday.

•  The CPUC is looking into possible unlawful conduct in a 2008 gas pipeline explosion in Rancho Cordova

•  The explosion occurred because of a faulty pipeline repair in 2006

•  Federal investigators found significant delays in PG&E’s response to complaints about a gas smell before the explosion

•  PG&E may have to pay $20,000 a day for two years leading up to the 2008 explosion

In the wake of the San Bruno explosion and fire that killed eight people and destroyed 37 homes in September, the CPUC said natural gas safety is in the forefront of people’s minds, according to a report in the Sacramento Bee.

In May, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) concluded that the December 2008 explosion in Rancho Cordova was caused by gas leaking from a faulty PG&E pipe repair in September 2006. The NTSB also found that the utility company significantly delayed its response to consumers’ complaints that they could smell gas. The same accusation was levied against PG&E in the San Bruno explosion, but that investigation has not yet been completed.

“This phase of our investigation of the terrible December 2008 incident in Rancho Cordova will ascertain whether PG&E violated rules and regulations and if management policies and practices contributed to violations of law and the loss of life,” CPUC President Michael Peevey said.

NTSB and CPUC investigators said:

•  PG&E installed the wrong piece of pipe in the 2006 repair, which ultimately caused the pipeline to leak and explode in 2008.

•  The utility company did not respond in a timely fashion when neighbors complained of a gas smell.

•  When PG&E did send a worker to check on the pipe in 2008, he arrived more than four hours before the explosion but didn’t have the proper equipment to test for outdoor leaks.

•  The company also failed to administer an alcohol and drug test to a leak investigator who did not arrive at the scene until more than two hours after he was summoned.

The actual fine will be determined after the investigation is complete, but the CPUC issued a statement saying that PG&E could be fined $20,000 a day for “charges of unlawful conduct” from the day the faulty repair was made (September 7, 2006 and the day of the explosion (December 24, 2008). The total could be as much as $16.5 million.

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented victims of fires and explosions for 35 years.  The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

Surveillance footage shows a woman in a crosswalk when a UCSF shuttle bus turned left in front of her and hit her. (KTVU News)

An elderly pedestrian was hit and killed by a U.C. San Francisco shuttle bus Wednesday afternoon while attempting to cross the street  in the city’s Tenderloin district, two blocks from her home.

•  65-year-old Nu Ha Dam was struck and killed by a UCSF shuttle bus

•  The pedestrian was in the crosswalk on Geary Street at Leavenworth

•  Surveillance video from a local market shows the bus turning left in front of her and hitting her

The fatal accident occurred shortly after 12:20 p.m., according to KTVU News.

San Francisco police Sgt. Mike Andraychak said 65-year-old Nu Ha Dam was walking near Geary and Leavenworth streets when she was struck and killed by the bus. The driver turned left from northbound Leavenworth onto Geary Street, where the front of the vehicle hit Dam as she crossed Geary.

Dam was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. She lived just two blocks from the accident.

Andraychak initially said he didn’t know whether Dam was in the crosswalk, but surveillance video from Star Market Liquor and Deli — located on the southeast corner of the intersection — clearly shows Lam stepping into the crosswalk and walking part of the way across then street when the bus turned left and hit her (see photos at left).

Market owner Marwan Aburahma told KTVU the shuttle driver backed up after he hit Lam, running over her a second time.

“I don’t know if he was scared or he wanted to back up or something, but he backed up the bus and hit her again, and she died on the spot,” Dhakal said.

The driver, whose name was not released, stopped at the scene and cooperated with investigators. UCSF Transportation Services director Jon Gledhill said in a statement that the driver was hired three years ago and has a clean driving record.

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have been representing clients in cases involving pedestrian injuries and fatalities since 1976. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

13-year-old Peter Lenz was killed in August at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Traumatic brain injury is common among young riders. (Photo: Wall Street Journal)

About a third of young motorcycle riders who get in crashes will suffer a traumatic brain injury, according to a study published Monday in the Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

• One-third of youths aged 12 to 20 who were hospitalized after motorcycle accidents sustained traumatic brain injuries (TBI)

• Youths  with TBI were 10 times more likely to die in the hospital and had a 24 percent likelihood of suffering permanent disabilities

• Youth-specific helmet laws are less effective than universal helmet laws

The motorcycle death rate for riders aged 12 to 20 increased 88 percent from 1999 to 2006, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

University of Pittsburgh researchers analyzed the 2006 Kids Inpatient Database and found that at least one-third of all youth hospitalized for motorcycle accidents sustained traumatic brain injuries (TBI) — and were 10 times as likely to die from their injuries than those without TBI.

The youth who were diagnosed with TBI and survived had a 24 percent probability of long-term or permanent disability as a result, researchers found.

“The large proportion, costs, and morbidity of TBI diagnoses in youth motorcycle crashes emphasize the need for effective crash prevention and head protection,” the study stated.

Ironically, youth helmet laws are failing to offer than protection.

“States with youth-specific laws had an increased risk of TBI that required hospitalization, serious and severe TBI, TBI-related disability, and in-hospital death among the youth they are supposed to protect,” the study concluded. “The only method known to keep motorcycle helmet use high among youth is to adopt or maintain universal helmet laws.”

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have 35 years of specialized experience in cases that involve traumatic brain injuries. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is1-866-692-8126.