Three children, 2 adults die in crash

DPS: 18-wheeler failed to stop for traffic jam, struck a minivan Friday near Mount Pleasant

MOUNT PLEASANT, Texas— Three children and two adults died Friday morning when an 18-wheeler hit the back of a minivan on Interstate 30 in Mount Pleasant, authorities said.

Four people in the minivan, three children and their mother, were killed, according to Texas Department of Public Safety officials. The father was airlifted to the hospital in Tyler and is in intensive care.

The driver of the 18-wheeler—a woman with a Tennessee driver’s license—also died, Texas Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Sylvia Jennings said.

Names of the victims had not been released as of presstime.

Three other people were hos-

pitalized after the crash, which authorities say happened when the 18-wheeler failed to stop for a traffic jam that was caused by a different wreck an hour earlier. .

The first crash happened at about 7:15 a.m. in the eastbound lanes of Interstate 30 at mile marker 165, Jennings said. A truck towing a trailer lost control, rolled over and was blocking both lanes, Jennings said. Only minor injuries were reported.

Eastbound traffic was backed up because of that wreck.

The second crash happened between 8:30 and 9 a.m. Friday morning at U.S. Highway 271/Talco Road, Exit 162 on Interstate 30 in Mount Pleasant.

Traffic was diverted in the area, and that portion of I-30 in the eastbound lanes was shut down for several hours.

One eastbound lane had reopened as of 2 p.m. Friday. The other eastbound lanes of I-30 at mile marker 165 were expected to be shut down for much of the day.