2 teenagers injured after vehicle plunges down Malibu canyon

MALIBU — Two teenagers were hospitalized today after their vehicle plunged about 150 feet down a canyon in Malibu, sheriff's deputies said.

The "vehicle over the side'' was reported at 10:28 a.m. on Malibu Canyon road near Piuma Road, said Lt. Rich Erickson of the Malibu/Lost Hills sheriff's station.

A black 2008 Dodge Charger veered off the road and went about 150 feet down the canyon, landing upside down in a stream below, Erickson said.

The victims, identified as 19-year-old Nicole Hertensen of Canyon Country and Zachary Gregg, 19, of Saugus, were initially trapped in the vehicle, but were freed within 50 minutes, Erickson said.

Traffic was closed to the public for nearly three hours.

Hertensen and Gregg were both taken to UCLA Medical Center in unknown condition.

The cause of the crash was under investigation.