BRIEFLY.

2 die, 2 near death after Valley crash

VALLEY GLEN - Two people were killed and two others were critically injured late Monday after a speeding vehicle crashed head-on into a utility pole, ripping the front end of the vehicle apart.

About 35 firefighters rushed to the 6000 block of North Coldwater Canyon Avenue just after 9 p.m. after receiving reports of the crash, said Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Jim Wells. There were three men and a woman in the car, said Sgt. Nels Jensen of the Los Angeles Police Department's Valley Traffic Division.

Witnesses said the vehicle had been traveling north on Coldwater at about 100 mph when the driver apparently lost control, according to Jensen.

Two of the occupants were pronounced dead at the scene, and a Jaws of Life tool had to be used to free the other two from the wreckage, Wells said. They were rushed to an area hospital, where they were listed in ``extremely critical'' condition, Jensen said.

- Daily News

New melee erupts at Jefferson High

For the second time in less than a week, police were sent to restore order at Jefferson High School on Monday after an outbreak of student violence that left one teenager hospitalized with a broken hip.

The melee broke out about 12:15 p.m. in the 1300 block of East 41st Street in South Los Angeles when a group of Latino students began taunting a group of black teens during lunch, Los Angeles Unified School District Police Chief Alan Kerstein said.

The student who broke a hip was injured when he tripped while running from the brawl, Kerstein said. Six others were treated on campus for cuts and bruises, Kerstein said.

- City News Service

New effort aimed at L.A. gang crime

Troubled by the increasing levels of violence from street gangs, a special City Council committee on Monday called for creating a new agency to coordinate programs.

The ad hoc committee on gang violence asked for a report on what steps are now needed to create a new Department of Urban Affairs to coordinate various intervention programs.

Councilman Martin Ludlow said the agency would work with the Los Angeles Police Department, other criminal-justice agencies and school officials to coordinate programs to deal with gangs.

- Daily News

Broken water pipe floods Simi road

SIMI VALLEY - A 10-inch water pipe broke Monday morning, flooding Los Angeles Avenue from Sinaloa Street to Madera Road with as much as a million gallons or more, officials said.

Los Angeles Avenue was closed to eastbound traffic at Madera through the area at the west end of Simi Valley, which had already been restricted to one lane because of sewer repairs in the area.

Joe Deakin, an assistant public works director for Simi Valley, said the break would be repaired overnight and officials hoped to have the eastbound traffic moving again at Los Angeles and Madera by morning.

- Daily News

Pedestrian safety earns city awards

GLENDALE - The city of Glendale has received two statewide awards for its pedestrian safety campaign.

The city received first-place awards of excellence in the public safety campaign and video-production categories for the multilingual public service announcements. The awards were handed out Thursday at the California Association of Public Information Officials' annual conference in Napa Valley.

- Daily News

Woman, 35, dies following collision

ACTON - A 35-year-old woman was fatally injured in a head-on collision in the Acton area Monday, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The collision occurred just before 4 p.m. at Soledad Canyon Road and Sierra Highway, California Highway Patrol Officer Tariq Johnson said.

The driver of the other vehicle - a 40-year-old man - was taken to Antelope Valley Hospital. His condition wasn't known.

- City News Service