HARTLEY COUNTY, Texas — Six people, including four children, from Cactus are dead and an Amarillo man was injured after an SUV and a tractor-trailer collided early Christmas morning in the Texas Panhandle.
The crash was reported early Wednesday at 12:28 a.m. in foggy, wet conditions on U.S. Highway 87, about six miles east of Hartley, according to a statement from the Texas Department of Public Safety.
Investigators believe 31-year-old Jaredi Mpaweingabire was driving a 2018 Honda Pilot and was pulling a small trailer westbound on US 87 when, for unknown reasons, it veered into the eastbound lanes and struck a 2016 Freightliner M2 box truck traveling on was driving in the eastbound lanes.
After the impact, the trailer separated from the SUV and the SUV caught fire and was completely engulfed in flames. All six people in the SUV were pronounced dead, including Mpaweingabire and:
Mapendo Olga, 28, from Cactus
A 5 year old male child from Cactus
A 6-year-old female child from Cactus
A 4-year-old female child from Cactus
A 2 year old male child from Cactus
The driver of the truck, 36-year-old Tyler Morales of Amarillo, suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to Coon Memorial Hospital in Dalhart for treatment. Investigators believe Morales, along with the two adults in the SUV, were wearing seat belts. It was not immediately clear whether the children in the SUV were wearing seat belts.
Other factors contributing to the crash were not immediately clear as the investigation is ongoing.
This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: 2 adults, 4 children killed in Christmas Day crash in Texas Panhandle
