Witnesses to a tragedy
Firefighters, fishermen tell of chaos after a car plunges into the water at the Port of L.A., killing a boy.
A 13-year-old boy died and his 8-year-old brother remained in critical condition after their family car plunged into murky water at the Port of L.A.
Traffic investigators and homicide detectives interviewed witnesses Friday to get a better understanding of how the car carrying the family of four wound up 30 feet underwater. The crash was being treated as an accident, said LAPD Officer Norma Eisenman.
Los Angeles County coroner’s spokesman Craig Harvey said the 13-year-old, Abdelkrim Ali Elmezayen of Los Angeles, died at a hospital Thursday night, a few hours after he was pulled from the harbor.
The boys and their parents reportedly left in their car from a parking lot at Ports O’ Call Village in San Pedro, a shopping and restaurant center, about 6:10 p.m. Thursday. The vehicle traveled some distance before it entered the water and landed upside down.
The area — known as the San Pedro Slip — has been used by fishermen for 100 years, a Port of Los Angeles spokeswoman said. The historical waterfront site does not have barriers, so there was nothing to stop the car from plunging into the water.
When firefighters arrived, they found the vehicle submerged off Berth 73, said Deputy Chief Daren Palacios of the Los Angeles Fire Department.
Miguel Meza was the first city firefighter to get to the harbor. After seeing the submerged car, he removed his emergency gear, jumped into the water and led the boys’ parents to a nearby ladder, Palacios said.
Witnesses said the parents screamed for help, yelling that their children were still trapped.
“I can’t get the screams of the mother out of my mind,” said Vito Palazzolo, a fisherman.
He said the mother was hysterical as paramedics tried to rescue her children.
Fisherman Ray Prince, 39, of San Pedro, was working with Palazzolo to untangle a net when he heard screeching tires, then saw a car barreling toward the water at 30 mph. The driver, he said, made a sharp right, lurching into the harbor.
“I wanted to jump in, but there was nothing I could do,” he said.
Divers had a hard time rescuing one of the boys because of poor visibility in the murky water, fire officials said.
Eventually, they were able to pull both boys from the vehicle.
The children were not breathing and CPR was performed. They were taken to the hospital, where Abdelkrim died.
TV news footage showed the boys’ parents struggling with firefighters to get to their children.
“LAFD firefighters’ thoughts remain with the family,” Fire Department spokesman Erik Scott said Friday. “That incident attests to the variety of difficult calls first responders go on daily.”
Meanwhile, Meza was lauded as a hero after diving into the water to help rescue the family.
Los Angeles City Councilman Joe Buscaino posted a photograph of the emotional firefighter on Facebook.
“This man is a true #hero in the City of Angels and I am so proud of him,” the councilman wrote.