UPDATE: Paul Walker Crash Not Investigated As Racing Incident

Posted by: Perry Smith in Paul Walker December 2, 2013 - 10:49 am 0 418 Views

Paul Walker, star of the “Fast and the Furious” movie franchise, was in Santa Clarita to help out with a charity effort when he was killed in a single-car crash Saturday, according to the operations manager of Walker’s nonprofit organization Reach Out WorldWide.

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“(Paul Walker) was the founder, he was a responder, he was a main part of it — 100 percent,” said JD Dorfman, operations manager for ROWW. “He’s not someone who just lent his name to the organization.”

Walker and Roger Rodas, CEO of Always Evolving, a performance sports car company based in Santa Clarita, were killed in a single-vehicle crash Saturday in Valencia.

“It was actually (Walker) and Always Evolving performance cars had gotten together and they were doing a toy drive and the beneficiary was going to be Reach Out WorldWide,” Dorfman said.

Throughout the weekend, as word of Saturday’s crash spread, hundreds came to Valencia to mourn Paul Walker’s death at the Santa Clarita industrial park.

Dorfman described Reach Out WorldWide as a network of professionals who all have first-responders skills they use in emergency situations.

“What we do is we go into areas immediately after the disaster and augment local resources,” Dorfman said, whether that’s helping to clear roads giving medical attention to victims.

Here’s a link to a podcast about Reach Out WorldWide and Walker’s involvement in KHTS AM-1220 with Dorfman.

Fatal crash involving Paul Walker and Roger Rodas

Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station deputies confirmed a 2005 Porsche Carrera GT traveling at a very high rate of speed crashed into a tree and burst into flames off Rye Canyon Loop Road on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.

A more specific description of the location where the collision occurred is Hercules Street at Kelly Johnson Parkway, which is very near the business park at the 28300 block of Rye Canyon Loop.

Sheriff’s Station Detective Jeff Maag, who’s investigating the crash, said all avenues were being explored as far as factors in the crash.

“We think speed is the cause, but we’re not sure of anything else,” said Maag, adding that no details of his investigation were being released at this time.

A picture of a Porsche Carrera GT was posted on Always Evolving’s Facebook page.

A statement by Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station officials Monday refuted the reports that another vehicle was involved.

“Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station traffic investigators are continuing to document the investigation and have received eyewitness statements that the car involved was traveling alone at a high rate of speed,” the statement read. “No eyewitness has contacted the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department to say there was a second vehicle. The posted speed limit in the area of the collision is 45 mph.”

Sgt. Brian Allen of the Sheriff’s Station, who was a first-responder to the scene, said Saturday officials are treating it as a single-car crash.

“We’re just hitting the ground running this morning, so we’re following every lead that we get to either prove or disprove (information),” Maag said.

Lt. Larry Dietz said the two bodies of the crash victims were “unidentifiable,” and that dental or skeletal records would likely be used for the official confirmation, which could take weeks.

Walker’s publicist confirmed the actor was in the car, and an associate of Rodas’ confirmed the CEO was the driver.