Five 17-year-old boys died late Saturday evening when the vehicle they were in drove off a cliff in Grand Junction, Colorado. First responders discovered the crashed vehicle on a hillside around 7:45 a.m. Sunday, according to the Grand Junction Police Department.
All five victims were residents of Grand Junction and were pronounced dead at the scene. The Mesa County Coroner's Office stated that three of the teenagers, including the driver and front seat passengers, were wearing seatbelts. The two other occupants were not wearing seatbelts and were ejected from the car.
Speed is being investigated as a factor in the crash, police said. The identity of the driver has not been publicly released. The names of the victims, who were all minors, are being withheld by the coroner's office in accordance with policy and state law, but have been shared by family and friends on social media.
Those identified include Braden Taylor, Tristan Tucker, Titus Gould, William Simms, and Tyler Martinez. Loved ones have shared tributes and created fundraising pages to support their families.
Tristan Tucker was remembered as being "full of life, potential, and a free spirit" on a GoFundMe page, which noted he was preparing to start his senior year of high school and obtain his driver's license. Simms' sister, Emily, posted on Facebook about the sudden loss of her brother and his friends, sharing a GoFundMe to assist their families. A Meal Train was also established for the family of Titus Gould.
Braden Taylor's grandfather, Calvin Wilken, confirmed his grandson was among the deceased, stating the vehicle rolled down "5 ledges of a very steep drop off over looking the railroad tracks and the Gunnison River." Tyler Martinez's grandmother, Debbie Gallegos Martinez, and other family members shared their grief on Facebook.
A spokesperson for the Grand Junction Police Department indicated that the investigation is ongoing and may take considerable time to complete. The crash occurred in a rural area outside of Denver.