Six people including four girls under the age of 13 have been killed in a horrific crash in the US state of Tennessee on Sunday.
The car, a Toyota Camry, was carrying eight people when it veered off the road at about 2am and struck a concrete shoulder barrier, flipping over and ejecting the passengers, according to emergency services.
Four children aged one to 12 were thrown from the vehicle and pronounced dead at the scene.
Two adult victims who were also in the car have been identified as 21-year-old Tania Rodriguez, who was driving, and passenger 35-year-old Rina Reyes.
A 34-year-old woman and an 18-year-old man were injured in the crash and both have been rushed to hospital.
“These are things sometimes I don’t believe people are necessarily meant to see as human beings,” Emergency Medical Services Director Brent Dyer said. “It’s one of the hardest things we’ll ever do, as anybody in emergency services, is to realize that you can’t do something for a child.”
Dyer said two medical helicopters and more than four different county emergency crews rushed to the scene.
A man in the car was transported to a different hospital with what appeared to be minor injuries.
Brent Dyer, chief of the county's emergency management services office, said the deceased children were aged between one and 18.
A Robertson County Emergency Medical Services statement read: “A total of four Advanced Life Support ambulances responded to this scene and one helicopter/air ambulance. Initial arriving units worked quickly to search for, assess and triage the total nine patients involved.
“Only one other vehicle was involved. The vehicle was a car that was found upside down with very extensive damage.
"Another adult male was ambulatory on the scene and reported to responders that he had been in this car. This man was stable with what appeared to be minor injuries at that time.”
The Tennessee Highway Patrol said it would be investigating the cause of the crash, which took place near exit 24 on I-24 West in Robertson County.
Officials said a damaged pickup truck was also recovered at the scene, but have not said whether it was involved in the crash. The driver of the pickup truck wa said to be able to walk away from the incident.
They confirmed that the vehicle collided with a concrete barrier underneath a bridge and came to rest half a mile down the road from the scene of the crash.
Robertson County Emergency Medical Services said it was ensuring that those who attended the scene were provided with mental health support.
“Our office recognises the incredible difficulty of this scene. Further coordination to involve professional mental health and counseling services for responders has been established,” it said.
“Please keep the families and persons involved in your thoughts and prayers.”
The woman was airlifted to the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville and the man was taken to the Skyline Medical Center in Nashville.
