3 killed, 3 injured in Pasadena crash

PASADENA, Calif. - Three people were killed, and another three were hospitalized Saturday following an early-morning crash in Pasadena.

It happened around 2:30 a.m., near North Sierra Madre and Foothill boulevards. Surveillance video obtained by FOX 11 showed the Tesla Model 3 speeding through a red light at the intersection, then launch over a curb, into an empty building.

"I heard an explosion," said Billy Billotti. "There were power lines down. People flew out of the car. The car was ripped apart. It was a very gruesome scene."

Billotti and Nicholas Fernandez live nearby. They both heard the crash and ran to the scene to try and help the victims. 

"I helped the one girl, she had a broken leg, it looked like," said Billotti. "The other one was in really bad shape. I was afraid to move them, but they were crying out to me to help them."

Three of the six people in the vehicle died, while police said the other three were critically injured and taken to a hospital. Pasadena police said all the victims were between the ages of 17 and 22. Authorities said they believe speed contributed to the crash, but they are investigating other factors.

"The first thing you could notice was a lot of bottles, beers, you could smell the alcohol in the car and [on] the people," said Fernandez.

It's currently unknown if the driver of the Tesla was using any sort of autopilot feature. 

"Our investigation will include looking into data recorded by the vehicle at the time of the collision, which could include information from any autopilot features," said Pasadena Police Lt. Anthony Russo.

The crash briefly knocked out power in the area, but it was restored early Saturday. The car left a massive hole in the side of an empty building. The nearby street was closed much of Saturday.

"It was bad," said Billotti. "I feel bad for the parents."