Driver killed in fiery crash on 710 Freeway identified as 15-year-old Long Beach boy

LONG BEACH, Calif. (KABC) -- A 15-year-old boy suspected of driving a stolen car was killed in a fiery crash that injured three other teenagers and caused a closure of the northbound 710 Freeway in Long Beach Monday night, authorities said.

The teenagers, all from Long Beach, were in a suspected stolen Kia that was being tracked by a police helicopter before it crashed with a semi-truck near the Anaheim Street exit.

The crash was reported just before 10:30 p.m. and led to the closure of the northbound 710 for a few hours.

Footage from the scene showed the Kia engulfed in flames. Officers rushed toward the burning car and pulled the people inside to safety.

The 15-year-old driver of the Kia was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Three passengers in the Kia - a 13-year-old girl, a 14-year-old boy and a 15-year-old girl - were hospitalized with moderate injuries.

The condition of the 22-year-old driver of the semi-truck was not disclosed, but he apparently was not seriously injured.

A CHP news release stated that the 15-year-old driver apparently tried to get off the freeway and cut in front of the semi-truck, causing the two vehicles to collide.