One day after the lives of four teens were cut short in a tragic crash in Clinton County, the community is coming together, while investigators continue their search for answers. Matt Hunter has the latest from Plattsburgh.

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PERU, N.Y. -- "Many people have said he had a big heart," said A. Paul Scott, Interim Superintendent for Peru Central Schools. "He'd be quick to say hello to people; I can let you know that is a fact."

The daily activity at Peru Central School hits a standstill as classmates mourn the loss of 17-year-old Brandon Rennert. The senior was killed, along with three other teens, when his vehicle veered off Peasleeville Road and crashed Tuesday evening.

Scott said, "This is an extraordinary, tragic incident because it ended the lives of four young individuals."

Inside the car with Rennert, his 17-year-old girlfriend Samantha Donah of Plattsburgh. Before his 1997 Mercury Sable struck an embankment, flipped over and burst into flames, it struck two pedestrians -- 17-year-old Dat T. Ong of Vietnam and 18-year-old Chu Xiong of China. All four were pronounced dead at the scene.

State Police Lt. Brent Davison said, "The car burst into flames, and they died as a result, most likely in the fire, therefore the family couldn't identify them."

Ong and Xiong were both international students working toward their degrees at Seton Catholic School in Plattsburgh and were believed to be on their way to a store near their host family's house when they were killed. Investigators have yet to determine what caused Rennert to lose control of his vehicle.

Lt. Davison said, "At this point it appears that it's a tragic accident, but we're going to thoroughly look at everything involved and come up with a complete finding."

While investigators try to assemble the clues from Tuesday's tragic crash, families and communities are coming together to honor the four lives lost much before their time.

"Our thoughts and our prayers go out to the families of all four," said Scott.

The mourning process will likely be a long one, especially considering it involves four different students from not only different parts of the region, but the world.

The Principal of Seton Catholic School says they are mourning the loss of both their international students and the other students. She says in part, “This is a small community and it’s a terrible tragedy. We’ve received offers of help from every single school district, we’re really blessed with the large extended community that we have up here. Our day began today as usual with prayer. We had a special prayer where we remembered all four students"