Limo Fire On California Bridge Kills 5 Women

A sudden limo fire on a California bridge last night killed five women, and several survivors able to escape were treated for burns and resultant injury.

The limo fire occurred around 10 PM Saturday night on the San Mateo-Hayward Bridge in San Mateo County. The vehicle was carrying nine women and a driver. Four of the passengers survived the limo fire, and the car’s driver was also able to flee the burning car.

No accident precipitated the deadly limo fire, and the company that owned and operated the 1999 Lincoln Town Car involved in the incident says it will cooperate fully with an investigation into the blaze.

Limo Stop dispatcher Pam Kaur told local news sources that she did not have much information yet about the fire, and said:

“We are very shocked … We are cooperating with the police.”

A local NBC affiliate says that the names of the five women killed in the limo fire will not be released until Monday, but the names of the surviving passenger and driver of the car were disclosed by police:

“The names of those killed have not been released, but the CHP released the names, ages and hometowns of the women who survived and the driver … The driver was identified as Orville Brown, 46, of San Jose … The passengers who survived were Jasmine Desguia, 34, of San Jose; Mary G. Guardiano, 42, of Alameda; Nelia Arrellano, 36, of Oakland; and Amalia Loyola, 48, of San Leandro.”

As police tried to determine the causes behind the limo fire last night, the California Highway Patrol says little is yet known about the women in the vehicle or their plans for the evening. A CHP officer said:

“We have no idea right now where they were going or where they were coming from.”

Two of the surviving women were taken to Stanford Hospital following the limo fire, and two were transported to Valley Medical Center in San Jose. Survivors were treated for smoke inhalation and burns.