(Houston) A 13-year-old boy was driving a pickup truck that collided with a pickup truck carrying a college golf team in Texas that killed 9 people, authorities said Thursday.
Posted at 7:34 p.m.
Six members of a New Mexico university golf team and their coach died in the crash, which happened Tuesday night in West Texas, police said.
The 13-year-old boy and his 38-year-old father also perished.
On the evening of the tragedy, the van they were in swerved into the opposite traffic lane, hitting the van head-on, according to Texas authorities.
Both vehicles then caught fire.
The young teenager was at the wheel at the time of the accident, said Bruce Landsberg, of the National Council of the safety of the American transport, with the local channel KWES TV.
At 13, driving is not allowed in Texas. You have to wait 15 years to obtain an accompanied driving license and thus take the road alongside an adult who holds the licence.
The van’s left front tire appears to have burst before the crash, which occurred while both vehicles were traveling at high speeds, Landsberg said.
Two Canadian students are still hospitalized in critical condition.