UPDATE: Six fatalities in major Highway 20 crash; 10 people rushed to hospital
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UPDATE:
Six people died in an early morning crash on US Highway 20 close to the Lindsey Boulevard exit.
A Dodge Ram pickup was traveling east when “it was driven left of center and collided with a westbound Chevrolet passenger van,” according to a news release from the Idaho State Police.
The van was full with 14 passengers plus the driver at the time of the collision.
“The driver of the van, along with five other passengers in the van, succumbed to their injuries at the scene of the crash,” the release stated. “Nine other passengers of the van were injured and transported to a local hospital via ground ambulances.”
The pickup’s driver was also transported to a hospital for treatment.
Both lanes were closed for five and a half hours, and the westbound lane remained blocked for another hour as Idaho State Police, Idaho Falls Police Department, Idaho Falls Fire Department
and Idaho Transportation Department responded to the scene.
This crash is still being investigated by the Idaho State Police, the release said.
ORIGINAL STORY:
IDAHO FALLS — Nine people were rushed to the hospital and all lanes of US Highway 20 are closed from Lindsay Boulevard to I-15 following a major crash Saturday morning.
Multiple ambulances and police officers responded to the scene of the collision, which happened around 5:30 a.m. Out of the nine people taken to the hospital, five were full-trauma and four were partial, according to Idaho Falls Fire spokesman Eric Grossarth.
The highway closure is expected to last for several hours as police investigate, Idaho Falls Police spokeswoman Jessica Clements says. Drivers need to find alternate routes.
Idaho State Police is investigating the crash.
EastIdahoNews.com will update this story as additional information is released.