Six kids believed to be in SUV that went off California cliff
Posted March 28, 2018 5:44 pm.
Last Updated March 28, 2018 6:38 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
MENDOCINO, Calif. – Authorities in Northern California say they believe all six children from a family were in a vehicle that plunged off a coastal cliff.
Mendocino County Sheriff Tom Allmon told reporters Wednesday that only three bodies of the children have been recovered. Their parents also died Monday.
Authorities say child welfare officials in Washington state had recently visited the home of two women who died.
The California Highway Patrol identified the adult victims as Jennifer Hart and Sarah Hart, both 39. The agency says their SUV was driving Monday on the Pacific Coast Highway when it pulled into a dirt turnout and continued driving off the cliff.
Clark County sheriff’s Sgt. Brent Waddell told The Associated Press that the family lived in Woodland, Washington, and recently had a visit from Child Protective Services.
He says the sheriff’s office later entered the house and found no obvious signs of trouble or violence.
Specialized crash investigators are studying the scene for clues, but it’s very curious because there were no skid or brake marks. But police say there’s no reason to believe the crash was a deliberate act.
The sheriff appealed for the public’s help in retracing where the family had been in recent days.
Allmon says a passer-by called 911 about the crash, but investigators don’t know exactly when the SUV plunged into the ocean. He says “an entire family vanished and perished during this tragedy.”
Missing teen was subject of viral photo
One of three children who is missing had gained fame when a picture of him hugging a white police officer during a protest went viral.
Fifteen-year-old Devonte Hart, who is black, was photographed during a 2014 protest in Portland, Oregon, over a grand jury’s decision not to indict a police officer in the shooting of a black man in Missouri.
At the Portland rally Hart stood crying out of sadness over the events in Ferguson. He was holding a “Free Hugs” sign.
A Portland policeman saw his sign and asked if he could have a hug. The photo showed an emotional Devante embracing the officer.
