2 children killed, 3 others hurt in crash involving LA Sheriff's vehicle

BOYLE HEIGHTS, Calif. (FOX 11 / CNS) - Authorities investigated Friday what caused a sheriff's department vehicle and two civilian vehicles to collide in Boyle Heights, sending one of the vehicles into a group of pedestrians, killing two believed to be children.

The impact of the crash around 7:25 p.m. Thursday at the intersection of Indiana Street and Whittier Boulevard caused one of the vehicles to strike five pedestrians standing on a corner, said Officer Tony Im of the Los Angeles Police Department's Media Relations Division.

One pedestrian died at the scene and the other four were taken to hospitals, where another died, police said. The conditions of the three surviving pedestrians were not immediately reported.

The two deceased pedestrians were children, according to reports from the scene.

Two deputies, who were headed to a shots-fired call in a sheriff's vehicle were taken to a hospital in stable condition, police said.

The other two civilian drivers involved in the crash remained at the scene and were cooperating with the investigation, police said.