Six Oklahoma high school students who were killed in a crash with a semi-truck were travelling in a four-seater car, according to authorities.
A crash report released on Wednesday said the four-person car was making a right turn when the collision happened on Tuesday, killing all six female students.
A semi-ruck appeared to have slid off the road near a stop sign when the crash occurred, killing the six students, according to reports.
The driver of the truck has been identified as Valendon Burton, 51, who the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said was uninjured following the collision.
The six victims attended Tishomingo High School, whose superintendent Bobby Waitman said in a statement Tuesday that his school district had ”suffered a great loss”
“Our hearts are broken, and we are grieving with our students and staff. We have counselors available to students presently,” he said. “We also have space prepared at Tishomingo High School with counselors available through the evening.”
Only the 16-year-old driver and a front-seat passenger were wearing seat belts, reported Fox2 Detroit.
The students were aged between 15 and 17 and according to KXII-TV were travelling in a 2015 Chevrolet Spark, which seats four passengers, the highway patrol said.
Johnston County Sheriff’s Office, who posted pictures of the crash scene on social media on Tuesday, said “Our prayers are with each of the families involved and our community.”
“This is an absolute tragedy which will have life long effects. This community and families need our support and prayers at this time,” the department stated in a Facebook post.
The school district was open on Wednesday with the focus on the emotional well-being of students, Mr Waitman said.
“Academics are secondary, frankly, at this point to the students knowing that they belong, that they have a safe place,” Mr Waitman told the Associated Press. “You’ll never fully understand, I don’t think we’ll ever fully understand a loss like this”.
The crash report, released Wednesday morning, said the circumstances of the wreck remained under investigation and the funerals for all six students had not been scheduled yet. Additional reporting by the Associated Press.
