Update: The victims in the fatal crash have been identified as Deion Robinson, Johnnie Ursery, and Demetrius Ingram. They were all 15-years-old.

UNIVERSITY CITY, Mo. – Twelve hours after a crash took the lives of three Ladue Horton Watkins High School students, mourners staged a vigil just feet from the scene.

“You never think that it will happen to you or people you know until it does happen,” said Nylah Sannold, who had been friends with two of the three victims for years.

The crash occurred just after 7:15 a.m. Wednesday in the 1000 block of Groby Road at Mulberry Lane, located near Kaufman Park.

Police found a 2016 Hyundai Accent embedded in the side of a vacant home. Corporal Dallas Thompson, Missouri State Highway Patrol, said the three 15-year-olds were found dead inside the vehicle. Only the driver had been wearing a seat belt.

Sannold remained in shock Wednesday evening, joining several others in paying tribute to a group she said could fill a room with light.

“It didn’t seem real that it happened,” she said. “We lived in the same neighborhood; we rode the bus together; actually had class with one of them. He sat behind me.”

Sannold wasn’t the only one who came out for support. Joseph Baker set up the vigil after the news came to the students at midday.

“I just wanted to put something up, so then people could come by as a condolence for those who passed,” Baker said.

Residents nearby said the curve around the 1000 block of Groby Road makes this stretch extra dangerous.

“People do go way too fast down Groby,” said Doug Gilbert, who lives nearby. “It’s a tragedy.”

The Ladue School District sent a letter home to parents on Wednesday. They will be offering counseling to teens and adults who want additional assistance.

St. Louis Alderwoman Sharon Tyus owns the vacant home. She and her husband were working on renovating the property. She didn’t learn of the tragedy until hours later.

And while walls can be rebuilt and bricks replaced, Tyus said what cannot be fixed is the lives of the three boys lost in a situation that could have been avoided.