Another Teen Versus Tree Accident

Unfortunately, I have to add to my Teen Driver posts with another accident involving local teens, speed and fixed objects:

A well-liked El Toro High student is fighting for his life at CHOC Children's at Mission Hospital after being critically injured in a car crash Saturday.

Brent Sirignano, 17, of Lake Forest is in a medically-induced coma and is in critical condition according to hospital sources.

"Doctors say he is in survival mode," said Barrie Wellman, who with his wife was one of the first at Mission Hospital's ER after the accident.

The single car crash – in which Sirignano was a passenger – happened at 1:50 p.m. Saturday on Hidalgo near the intersection of Vista Del Lago in Mission Viejo, said Lt. Mike Gavin, chief of police services for the city.

"Deputies responded to the scene and found a 2006 Scion that had collided, passenger side first, into a tree," Gavin said. "The driver and passenger were trapped in the vehicle and had to be extricated by Orange County Fire Authority."

According to witness reports, the 17-year-old driver, also of Lake Forest, appeared to be driving at an excessive speed when the car lost traction and slid across the roadway crashing into the tree, Gavin said. The two El Toro High students were transported to Mission Hospital. Kalmen was uninjured.

Blood tests were taken from the driver to check whether drugs or alcohol were a factor in the accident, Gavin said. The Sheriff's Department Major Accident Reconstruction Team responded to the scene. The investigation is ongoing.

I really hate these things, but I post them in hopes that others will read about them and learn something important.