LOS ANGELES -- Eight youths in a compact car -- two of them in the trunk -- were injured Friday when the car went off Mulholland Drive near Sherman Oaks and tumbled 250 feet down a cliff, authorities said.

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The youths were in a Nissan Sentra about 2:20 a.m. near Sevy Lane when the vehicle rolled down the cliff, said Ron Myers of the Los Angeles Fire Department.

Deydi Valle, 19, of Anaheim, lost control of his car while rounding a curve. The car hit a telephone pole and went down the embankment into a ravine, rolling several times before coming to rest, said Capt. Nancy Lauer of the Los Angeles Police Department.

The other victims included a 12-year-old boy, three 14-year-old boys, a 15- year-old girl and 16-year-old boy and girl. They reportedly all live in Orange County.

Two of the injured teens were able to walk back to the road, but the other six were stranded below, Myers said.

"These are the luckiest kids in the world," said Capt. Carlos Calvillo of the Los Angeles Fire Department. "They went down a cliff 250 feet in a Nissan Sentra -- eight kids in the car, two in the trunk -- and most of them walked away."

The two who had been in the trunk were especially lucky to survive, he said.

One of the 16-year-olds had a broken back and a collapsed lung, and one of the 14 year-olds suffered a fractured skull and will require surgery. All the others had only minor injuries, Lauer said.

"The number of individuals inside the car, as well as the speed, and the fact that some were not wearing seatbelts, was a significant factor which contributed to this accident," Lauer said.

"The fact that only two were seriously injured is amazing," she added.

By 4:45 a.m., all the victims had been rescued from the bottom of the cliff by an urban search and rescue team using special equipment, Myers said.

Friday afternoon, UCLA Medical Center reported that two of the victims had been treated and released, and one was hospitalized in fair condition.

Valle tested negative for alcohol consumption, and nothing inside the car indicated the juveniles had been drinking. But the driver could face possible child endangerment charges, authorities said.

They were reportedly on their way home from a family party when the crash occurred.