Six people, including three adult siblings travelling to Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights, were killed when their Chevrolet Traverse crashed into a roadside assistance truck on Florida’s Turnpike.
The collision happened on Friday evening, October 23, in the northbound lanes near mile marker 252 in Orange County, south of Orlando. Both vehicles left the road and caught fire, trapping the six occupants of the SUV inside.
Florida Turnpike crash under investigation
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, the Road Ranger truck had been stopped in the central reservation with its emergency lights on while its driver assisted at an earlier incident.
The driver was then asked to help a box truck on the outside shoulder and began moving across the carriageway. The Traverse was travelling in the inside lane when its front left struck the rear right of the assistance vehicle, troopers said. ([wftv.com](https://www.wftv.com/news/local/orange-county/six-people-killed-after-suv-hits-road-ranger-truck-floridas-turnpike/TJ72ZEXJAFAULHVIMUFG32I644/))
Witnesses told investigators the SUV appeared to be travelling at high speed without its headlights on. The account has not been presented as a final finding, and the circumstances of the crash remain under investigation.
The SUV driver and five passengers, all adults, died at the scene. The Road Ranger driver remained at the location and did not require hospital treatment, according to local reports. ([wftv.com](https://www.wftv.com/news/local/orange-county/six-people-killed-after-suv-hits-road-ranger-truck-floridas-turnpike/TJ72ZEXJAFAULHVIMUFG32I644/))
Marshall Clarke-Milton said she became alarmed after sensing that something was wrong when she tried to contact her children. She later heard about the crash and contacted officials.
“My heart sank. Because somehow I knew it was them, but I didn’t want it to be them,” she said.
Her children, Charles, Jakara and Dalvena, were among those killed. The siblings had been travelling together for what was intended to be their first trip as a group, their mother said.
The National Transportation Safety Board is expected to investigate the collision. The Florida Highway Patrol said its crash report would be released within 10 days.
