4 Teens Injured In Fiery Cloverdale Crash: CHP

SONOMA COUNTY, CA — Four people were injured Monday night in a fiery Cloverdale crash when a southbound teen driver went off roadway and struck a tree, California Highway Patrol reported. The solo-vehicle collision happened at about 6:10 p.m. on River Road near Angelli Road, according to Santa Rosa Area CHP Officer Jonathan Sloat.

The 16-year-old female driver and her four teenage passengers were able to get out of the car, a 2015 Chevy Malibu, before it became engulfed by flames, Sloat said.

The driver, a Cloverdale resident, was not injured, the officer said.

Her four passengers — two boys, ages 15 and 18, and two girls, ages 17 and 15, all of Cloverdale — were all taken to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital for injuries ranging from minor to moderate, according to Sloat.

"The teens stated that they had participated in the CHP 'Every 15 Minutes' program and, as a result, made sure to wear their seatbelts, which prevented possible fatal injuries," Sloat said.

Responding officers determined neither drugs nor alcohol were factors in the crash, he said.

However, CHP is considering charging the recently licensed teen on suspicion of violating the conditions of her provisional driver's license, Sloat said.

For the first year of a provisional license, California law forbids drivers younger than 18 from transporting passengers younger than 20.

Photo by Renee Schiavone/Patch