ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- St. Petersburg Police are investigating a fatal crash near Lakewood High School in which one student was killed and two more were injured.
- Two students injured, one killed in crash
- Police say vehicle hit tree
- School system has support team in place
It happened Tuesday afternoon at 54th Ave. S and 16th Ct. S. Police said the car had just left the school when it hit a tree.
Bryson Welton-Williams, 18, who was driving the car, died from his injuries in the crash.
The injured students were identified as Joshua Heath and Ramcharan Lattimore. Both are 18 years old.
All three were Lakewood High School Students, according to the St. Petersburg Police Department.
"Pinellas County Schools has a support team in place at the school for any students or staff in need of assistance," said school spokeswoman Lisa Wolf. "The support team will be at the school as long as needed."
By evening, a makeshift memorial had already begun to grow around the scene of the crash.
Parent reaction
Ramcharan Lattimore's father, Frank, told us that upon seeing the mangled car, he was shocked anyone survived.
"I was there on the scene and I seen the car," Lattimore told us, "When I first seen the car, I couldn't believe any of those kids made it out of there."
Lattimore's wife, Marie, told us she hadn't seen the car yet, but she did receive a frantic phone call from a bystander telling her that her son crawled out of the wrecked vehicle after it crashed.
"When she called me, my heart just dropped," Marie explained. "And I was just trying to get to him, reach him and I asked her if she could put her cell phone to his ear and I could hear him screaming and crying. He kept on crying, telling me, "Mommy, my legs, I can't feel my legs."
The Lattimores told us Ramcharan, also known as "Trey," escaped with just cuts and bruises.
All three students were set to graduate in less than a month. The school announced that grief counselors would be made available on Wednesday for students.