HORROR CRASH
At least 5 dead and dozens injured in shocking highway pileup
AT LEAST five people are dead and dozens more are injured after a shocking highway crash involving a tour bus, two trucks and multiple cars on a busy highway.
Witnesses said at least one person was seen laying on the ground at the scene of the fatal crash, which took place in the early hours of Sunday morning, according to Pennsylvania Turnpike spokesman Carl DeFebo.
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He said in a tweet the tour bus flipped on its side.
A coroner confirmed five fatalities at the scene in Mt. Pleasant Township, Pennsylvania.
Twenty-five people ranging from ages 7 to 52 were being evaluated at Excela Frick Hospital, and two of those patients are expected to be transferred to a trauma hospital, Excela Health Spokeswoman Robin Jennings told the .
Nine of the victims were under 18 years old, she said.
Eleven victims - one in critical condition - were taken to Forbes Hospital, according to a hospital spokeswoman.
Tractor-trailer driver Angela Maynard said she was traveling east on the highway at around 3:30am when she and her co-driver passed by the harrowing sight.
After seeing "a lot of smoke," the pair got out of the truck to see if anyone was hurt.
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"It was horrible. I was trying to make sure everyone was OK," she told the newspaper.
Maynard said she saw one person lying on the ground, and another trapped in their truck.
"I walked toward the scene and saw one of the truck drivers laying near the barrier.
"I tried to keep him occupied, keep talking until medical help arrived.
"He was in bad shape. He was floating in and out of consciousness."
Several ambulance companies raced to the scene from nearby counties to transport the victims to three local hospitals as part of protocol for a "mass casualty incident," a public safety official told the newspaper.
Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board were called to the scene, officials said.
Details of what caused the accident weren't immediately available.
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The National Weather Service forecast for the area listed unknown precipitation and an air temperature just below freezing early Sunday.
But DeFebo said it was "premature" to say if weather was a factor in the crash.
Debris cause the turnpike's eastbound lanes to be closed, the Tribune-Review reported.
It's likely that at least a portion of the state highway will be closed for the rest of the day, DeFebo said.
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