Updated at 4 p.m.: La Palma police say the woman was not under the influence of alcohol or drugs; she may have fallen asleep at the wheel.
A 22-year-old Long Beach woman slammed her 1999 Mercedes Benz coupe into the railing of the Los Coyotes Creek bridge along the Cerritos-La Palma border early Thursday, totaling her vehicle, but she remarkably walked away with only minor injuries.
The solo car crash took place at the bridge on Del Amo Boulevard, just east of Bloomfield Avenue about 2:45 a.m., according to La Palma police, who responded to the accident along with deputies from the .
The woman was traveling westbound on Del Amo Boulevard when she apparently veered left, crossing into the opposing lane of traffic and slammed into the bridge railing, according to a Cerritos sheriff's deputy who was among the first to respond to the scene.
Upon impact, it appears the guardrail penetrated the front windshield on the driver's side area but somehow missed striking the woman. The Mercedes was left suspended on the railing, preventing the car from crashing down into the creek bed below.
The woman, who was stuck inside the vehicle, was screaming for help when officers and firefighters arrived at the scene. Once released from the wreckage, she was taken to La Palma Intercommunity Hospital for treatment of minor cuts and scrapes.
Police say this was not a DUI-related accident.
"It was not alcohol or drug related," said La Palma police Sgt. Art Wright, adding that the crash remained under investigation. "There is a possibility that she had fallen asleep at the wheel."
Because the accident occurred on the southside of Del Amo Boulevard (along the Cerritos-La Palma border), the official investigation is being handled by the La Palma Police Department.
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