Seven killed in road crash near Yellowstone National Park

Seven people were reportedly killed on Thursday when a tour bus and a truck collided near Yellowstone National Park, including Chinese and Italian tourists. According to US police, a Dodge Ram pickup truck and a Mercedes passenger van carrying 14 tourists collided on a highway in eastern Idaho, injuring eight others. The fire broke out in both vehicles. According to Chinese state media, the Mercedes van was the cause of five Chinese tourists' deaths. According to the Idaho State Police, the bus was carrying 12 Chinese and 1 Italian when it crashed. The cause is still under investigation by police. The crash site's route leads into the park, which is now entering its busiest tourist season. The crash tragically resulted in the deaths of six people in the van and the pickup driver," Idaho State Police (ISP) stated on Friday. According to a statement from the Chinese consulate in San Francisco, five of the deceased were Chinese citizens, as late expressed deep condolences for the deceased and sincere sympathy to the families of those affected and the injured." In addition, it stated that US officials had requested a thorough investigation and that Chinese officials had communicated with the injured and their families. According to the New York Times, Fremont County coroner Brenda Dye, two of the victims were Italian, though police have not confirmed this. Texas resident Isaiah Moreno, 25, has been identified as the pickup truck's driver by police. No other victims' identities have yet been disclosed.

Moreno was the sole occupant of the pickup truck, a spokesman for ISP told the BBC in an email on Saturday.

According to police, the tourist van's driver had a California license. "Next-of-kin notifications are ongoing and coordinated with appropriate local and international authorities," ISP said in a statement.

"The process is complex and will take additional time due to the international nature of the individuals involved." ISP "continue to work closely" with Ctour Holiday LLC, which organized the tour, and the Chinese and Italian consulates, according to the statement. Idaho Governor Brad Little posted on X to say that he was praying for victims, and that his state was "working closely with local officials to get answers on what led to this terrible tragedy".

"Due to the severity of the injuries," the police stated, an air ambulance transported some victims to the hospital. A passerby snapped a picture of flames and billowing smoke near the truck wreck in the vicinity of Yellowstone. The who took the photo, local resident Roger Merrill, said he was on his way home when he saw the wreck.

Both vehicles were on fire, he said, and bystanders were trying to care for the survivors on the side of the highway.

He stated, "Because it leads to the main entrance of Yellowstone National Park, it is a very dangerous highway." "It is extremely crowded." Emergency personnel treated the victims and cleared the crash site, which was approximately 25 kilometers (16 miles) from Yellowstone's entrance, for seven hours. The oldest US national park, it covers nearly 3,500 sq miles in three states: Idaho, Wyoming and Montana.It draws an average of four million tourists every year, with the majority of visitors coming between May and September, according to the National Park Service.

Aaron Snell, a spokesperson for the police, stated that all eight van survivors were transported to hospitals with varying degrees of injuries. The victims' information was kept private until the next of kin were informed. Fremont County coroner Brenda Dye told the New York Times that the pickup driver was from Texas and that all six people who died in the van were from outside the United States, including two Italians. Near Henry's Lake in eastern Idaho, about 20 miles (32.18 kilometers) west of Yellowstone, the accident took place on US Highway 20. A news video taken at the scene showed clear weather. The accident's circumstances were not detailed by the authorities. Dye claims that two witnesses to the crash jumped out of their vehicles to free victims from the van. The Times reported that they were able to free eight people, including a child, from the wreckage before the van caught fire. State police said the highway was closed in both directions for nearly seven hours while emergency and transportation crews worked to manage the scene and clear the roadway.