The tragic accident on FM 812 Saturday left behind only scraps of clothing and shredded tire, but for paramedics called to the scene the incident would remain etched in their minds.
"We're just not gathering our thoughts fast enough when it's over. Either you're staring at your report, and you can't write it, or your truck needs a lot of cleanup, and you're just not moving fast," Mark Karonika of Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services said.
Police said the driver, 19-year-old Jose Rodriguez, was driving a Ford pickup carrying seven teenagers down FM 812 at 2 a.m., when he decided to race another vehicle.
"Just kids out having a good time not making the best decisions," Karonika said.
Skid marks indicated the pickup ran into a ditch before catapulting over a drainage culvert. Paramedics arrived to find 15-year-old Brenda Salazar dead, and the rest of the passengers injured.
Police said no one was wearing a seat belt, and two teenagers were riding in the truck's bed.
Rodriguez, the driver, suffered only scrapes. He's now in jail for the second degree felony of racing causing death. Police set his bail at $1 million.
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Racing Fatality
The driver and passengers ranged from age 11 to 19. News 8 Austin's Heidi Zhou more details.
 
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"Speeding is dangerous. You're never as good a driver as you think you are," Karonika said. "The moment you find out that 'oh, I can do it,' is when something is going to happen."
Police said they saw a similar event in April, when a 15-year-old driver caused a crash that killed two teenage passengers.
Now one more teenager is dead, and authorities want the pattern to end.
"I would tell every parent and every child, sit down and talk about 'what it would be like tonight if you don't come home,'" Karonika said.
Paramedics said two of the injured passengers from Saturday's wreck were transported in critical condition. The rest suffered injuries ranging from scratches to broken bones.
Rodriguez faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted. Immigration and Customs Enforcement also issued an immigration detainer on Rodriguez.
