News footage shows the scene after the Virginia crash that killed three teenagers (WTTG).
A Virginia teenager who survived a devastating crash that killed three of her friends spent two weeks in the hospital before her family learned what had happened to her.
According to Washington, D.C.-based NBC affiliate WRC, Virginia State Police said the unidentified 16-year-old girl, referred to as “Marta,” has since been reunited with her family. She was the sole survivor of the crash, which occurred shortly after midnight on Sept. 28, when troopers spotted a stolen vehicle on Interstate 395. The driver lost control and slammed into a jersey wall, killing three other juveniles: two 16-year-old boys and a 17-year-old boy.
Police said Marta’s family spent two weeks unaware of her whereabouts. She remains hospitalized while recovering from injuries that were reportedly life-threatening.
Marta’s sister told Spanish-language news station Telemundo, according to WRC, that their mother had allowed the teen to leave their Maryland home to spend time with friends the night before the crash. The sister said Marta did not know the vehicle was stolen when she got inside.
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The sister said Marta called the family from the driver’s phone less than an hour before the crash. She remained on the phone as the situation became increasingly dangerous. “I remember she told them to take her home already, but they said they were going to go do other things and then they would bring her back here,” the sister told Telemundo.
She added, “That’s when the officer recognized them and started following them. She says she grabbed onto the seat and kept telling them to stop, that she wanted to get out, because she felt something was wrong, that something was going to happen to her.”
State troopers identified the vehicle as stolen and attempted to stop it. Police said the driver sped away, then tried to take an exit ramp while fleeing but was traveling too fast and lost control. None of the four teenagers was wearing a seat belt.
The 17-year-old boy died at the scene, while the two 16-year-old boys died at a hospital. Police said one of the 16-year-olds was driving and did not have a license.