Witness Recounts Heartbreaking Death of 20-Year-Old Skateboarder
Posted 8:58 PM, March 23, 2015, by Kennedy Ryan and Kareen Wynter, Updated at 12:26AM, March 24, 2015
Describing the March 20 scene on Glendora Mountain Road, where she saw 20-year-old skateboarder Eric Pederson slam into a dump truck and die, witness Jolina Cuaresma apologized to his parents that she couldn't save the UC Irvine student.
Pederson was riding downhill Friday morning with two friends when investigators said he crossed the double yellow line and slammed into a dump truck driving uphill the opposite direction.
Eric Pederson is seen in a photo from his Facebook page.
The DC-based attorney and her brother were also driving uphill that day headed on a hike to the "Bridge To Nowhere" in the San Gabriel Mountains. The pair took a wrong turn and were trying to turn around on the narrow mountain road when the skateboarders zoomed past their car.
"They were going so fast," Cuaresma said. "You go over this blind corner ... there's no way you see anybody coming up."
It was only second later that Pederson collided with the truck. Cuaresma and her brother arrived at the crash site within minutes.
"I looked at the driver right after the impact and I saw his eyes and I couldn't even say anything to him," an emotional Cuaresma said.
A truck was stopped at the scene of a fatal collision on Glendora Mountain Road on March 20, 2015. (Credit: KTLA)
Days after the crash, Cuaresma said she was still suffering anxiety from the grim scene and feelings of guilt that she was unable to save the UC Irvine mechanical engineer major.
She wondered if she and her brother hadn't stopped to let the skateboarders go buy while making their U-turn, perhaps Pederson wouldn't have hit the truck.
She wanted to send this emotional message to his parents.
"I'm so sorry," a tearful Cuaresma said. "I wish we could have done something else."
Topics: Angeles National Forest, downhill skateboarding, eric pederson, Glendora Mountain Road, Jolina Cuaresma, San Gabriel Mountains
Mets' Alonso Outlasts Fellow Rookie Vlad Jr. to Win Home Run Derby
2 Killed After Car Plummets Over Side of Mountain Road in Angeles National Forest, Ignites Fire
1 Dead After Vehicle Goes Off Road, Plunges Into Water Near Morris Dam in San Gabriel Mountains
72-Year-Old Man in Wheelchair, His Caretaker Struck By Truck in Costa Mesa
Man Protecting Dog Is Slashed, Bitten by Mama Bear in Sierra Madre Confrontation
29-Year-Old Among 11 Killed in Hawaii Plane Crash Was Skydiving Instructor, Lover of Adventure
Missing 4-Year-Old Girl Had Previously Been Removed From Texas Home After Abuse Allegations
No Survivor in Skydiving Plane Crash That Killed 11 in Oahu, Hawaii
2nd Man Dies After Crash Involving Alleged DUI Driver in Hemet; Victims ID'd as Beaumont 22-Year-Olds
Texas Stepdad of Missing 4-Year-Old Girl Says He Was Abducted, Knocked Unconscious When She Vanished
Texas Stepfather Who Says Missing Girl Was Abducted Changed His Story 'Multiples Times': Police