'It's a tragedy': 3 Long Island teens die in horrific crash after unlicensed 16-yr-old lost control of car
LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK: On the night of Wednesday, December 21, three teenagers died on Long Island when their car left the road and crashed into a tree. According to Suffolk County police, the tragic collision in Holtsville ejected the 16-year-old driver, who was driving without a license, and one of the passengers from the 2009 Infiniti G37.
Cem Gunes, who lives in Holtsville, was driving his mother's vehicle even though he only had a learner's permit, police said. Authorities said Gunes and the two occupants, Landon Kromhout Auditore, 18, of Mastic, and Taylor Beltramini, 17, of Moriches, were pronounced dead at the scene. As reported by the New York Post, no one else was in the car.
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Given that Gunes and Beltramini were tossed from the automobile, according to the police, it seems improbable that they were wearing seatbelts. It's unknown if Auditore, who stayed in the vehicle following the collision, was wearing one. In addition, witnesses informed police that the car looked to be speeding before the 9.45 pm collision, which resulted in many overturns. “Witnesses tried to assist in every way possible,” Suffolk Police Department Inspector Darrell Simmons told reporters Thursday, December 22, according to Newsday. “It was a horrific accident and I’m sure they did everything they could.”
Gunes was not supposed to be operating the vehicle without an adult who was at least 21 years old and had a driver's license, according to the police, because he only had a learner's permit. According to News 12, Gunes' girlfriend Adriana Barrington described herself as "speechless" as she gathered some of his items at the crash site on Thursday, December 22, including a notebook and a sneaker. “I was supposed to spend all of Christmas break with him and now he’s just, he’s gone,” she told the station.
According to school authorities who spoke to Newsday, the trio all attended local high schools, and Beltramini and Auditore were scheduled to graduate in January and June, respectively. Police are still attempting to pinpoint the exact speed, direction, and origin of the vehicles as well as any additional factors that may have contributed to the collision. “It’s terrible. We’re all parents; we have young kids that drive,” Simmons reportedly said. “It’s an absolute tragedy, especially around Christmas.”
MEAWW previously reported a similar kind of incident where four children, two sets of brothers and sisters, were killed in a tragic car accident in Iowa. The Marshalltown victims were identified as sisters Linette Lopez, 15, and Yanitza Lopez, 17, as well as brothers Adrian Lara, 13, and Isacc Lara, 16. On November 4, shortly after 11.pm, in Marshalltown, a community of about 27,000 people situated about 50 miles northwest of Des Moines, the teenagers from two families were in a car that smashed into a utility pole. When Marshalltown police officers arrived on the scene, the car was badly burned out and engulfed in flames. All four of the people inside were declared dead at the scene.
“Our hearts go out to the Lara and Lopez families. This is a tragedy for our entire community. We know the community will stand strong in support of everyone affected. That is the Marshalltown way,” Marshalltown Police Chief Mike Tupper said in a statement. According to authorities, they are still looking into what caused the collision.