A car crashed into Michael's Super Burgers on Slauson Avenue in Santa Fe Springs Monday afternoon, killing one person and injuring two others, according to authorities investigating the scene. Los Angeles County Fire received the call around 2:24 p.m., and the restaurant sits in the 11500 block of E. Slauson Avenue.
Vehicle Partially Inside the Restaurant
As reported by KTLA, the station's Sky5 helicopter captured footage showing a car partially inside the restaurant, its front end crumpled with major damage. One person was pronounced dead at the scene, while one injured person was taken to a local hospital in unknown condition.
The same KTLA report notes that it is not yet known whether the victims were inside the restaurant or the vehicle at the time of impact, and the driver's condition has not been confirmed. Whether drugs or alcohol played any role in the crash also remains unknown, per the outlet's reporting.
A Neighborhood Fixture on Slauson Avenue
Michael's Super Burgers has long been a familiar name to locals in Whittier and Santa Fe Springs, recognized for its charbroiled burgers and Greek-American diner style, according to a YouTube feature on the restaurant. The crash leaves the longtime eatery dealing with significant physical damage on top of the loss of life connected to the incident.
Because Santa Fe Springs contracts its law enforcement to the Whittier Police Department, investigators from that agency are expected to handle the crash probe, per the City of Santa Fe Springs. That arrangement is set to change, however, as the city announced in April that it will end its 30-year policing contract with Whittier and launch its own municipal department on March 1, 2028, according to the City of Whittier.
A Pattern Seen Nationwide
The Storefront Safety Council says operator error and pedal confusion, not intoxication, are the most frequent culprits behind storefront collisions, together outpacing DUI-related incidents as a cause.
An amended version of AB 764 would authorize insurers to consider bollards or vehicle barriers as eligible for an insurance discount, according to the California Legislative Information site. It is not known whether Michael's Super Burgers had any such protective barriers installed along its Slauson Avenue frontage.
Santa Fe Springs has seen other fatal transportation incidents in recent months. In August, a woman jogging along Lakeland Road was struck and killed by a Metrolink train, according to CBS News. Slauson Avenue itself carries a grim history of its own; back in May 1998, a high-speed crash on the street killed four young occupants after a driver lost control and struck a tree in the median, the Los Angeles Times reported at the time.
No charges have been announced in connection with Monday's crash, and the investigation remains active.
