Two teenage best friends were killed in a horror “fireball” smash after two allegedly speeding muscle cars slammed into their vehicle and split it in half, police said.
High school seniors Maddalyn Dailey, 17, and Isabell Hill, 16 (also identified by family as Isabell DeLand/DeLang), died at the scene on August 14 at around 8.30pm near the intersection of Ridgecrest Road and Elmwood Drive in Victorville, California, USA.
Fatal Collision
Maddalyn had been driving her silver Acura TL to drop Isabell home before heading back for dinner with her family when tragedy struck. Police believe a yellow Chevrolet Camaro and a black Dodge Charger barrelled into the junction at extreme speed and smashed into the girls’ car as Maddalyn pulled into the intersection.
Maddalyn’s devastated dad Dustin Dailey said he was only moments behind his daughter. He heard the garage door close as she left, then a huge crash from his home just four doors away.
“I saw everything,” he told the Los Angeles Times. “The ball of fire from the other car that hit it, her car in pieces.”
“They were ejected from [the car], thrown clear down the road,” he added. Officer Jebediah Wheeler said Maddalyn pulled onto the intersection when the Acura was struck first by the Camaro and then again by the Charger.
Investigation and Aftermath
“The violent impact caused the Acura to split in half,” the California Highway Patrol (CHP) said in a release, as the wreckage erupted into flames. Investigators are examining witness accounts that the two muscle cars were involved in illegal street racing moments before the collision.
One driver has already been arrested on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter after staying at the scene and co-operating with officers. The suspect’s identity has not yet been released, the Daily Mail reported.
But police say the driver of the Camaro ran from the scene on foot in the immediate aftermath. Moreover, investigators allege the fleeing driver even left their own young child behind in the wrecked Camaro.
Community Outrage
Authorities are urging anyone who saw the crash or has dashcam footage to come forward as the hunt for the missing driver continues. The tragedy has reignited outrage over street racing in Victorville, which has been a long-running issue.
In a previous warning, Victorville Police said: “The Victorville Police Department urges drivers and parents of drivers to consider the seriousness of illegal street racing. This activity can take lives, cost thousands of dollars in damages and fines, and land participants in jail. In the end there is no ‘winner’.”
Maddalyn’s father also reportedly pointed to the dangerous junction, calling the road a “deathtrap” and saying: “She’s usually pretty good about it because everybody that lives here knows that road is just a deathtrap.”
