2 men killed when SUV crashes, plunges into channel in Long Beach

LONG BEACH, Calif. (KABC) -- Two men were killed when their vehicle crashed and then plunged into 10 feet of water in Long Beach on Sunday, authorities said.

The crash was reported at 6:21 p.m. in the area of Studebaker Road, just south of Loynes Drive.

It's not clear what caused the SUV to lose control but it apparently struck a center divider on the road and then plunged over the side into the Los Cerritos Channel.

Firefighters say when they arrived a few minutes later, they found the vehicle in 10 feet of water. Divers and a search-and-rescue team were called out, and they found one man in the water. They brought him up and performed CPR but he was later pronounced dead at the hospital.

A second man was found trapped inside the vehicle in the water. They freed him and brought him up but he was also pronounced dead.

The cause of the crash is under investigation.

One witness who says she was driving in the area at the time says it appeared the vehicle may have been speeding and at one point it nearly struck her own car before swerving in an overcorrection. After the crash, she said, she saw flames coming from the vehicle before it was submerged in the water.