A family of eight, including a grandmother, her pregnant daughter and five children, was killed in a fiery six-vehicle crash when a tractor-trailer driver rammed into their van on a Georgia highway Monday afternoon.
Trucker Kane Aaron Hammock was allegedly driving too close behind a 2014 Dodge Grand Caravan when he smashed the car, killing all eight occupants and triggering a “chain reaction” that collected four other vehicles in the deadly crash on I-85 in Commerce, Georgia, just after 4 p.m., according to officials.
The bodies of all eight family members were found at the scene, approximately 66 miles northeast of Atlanta.
Officials haven’t named any of the victims, but relatives identified them Tuesday.
Kenia Ramirez and Darwin Ventura were found dead inside their 2014 Dodge Grand Caravan after trucker Kane Aaron Hammock allegedly smashed into them on I-85 in Commerce, Georgia, their family told Atlanta News First.
Ventura and Ramirez, who was pregnant with her second child, shared a daughter, Kayle, who was also in the car along with Ramirez’s mother, Sonia Maribel Ramirez, and her own children Justin, Andy, Natali and Evan.
All eight family members were pronounced dead at the scene.
A large blaze broke out in the van and the truck as a result of the crash.
“I can’t even describe the violence of the impact. It was so unexpected,” Mike Rullan told the outlet.
Rullan, who got caught up in the crash, could not identify the van because of the destruction left behind at the scene.
“It was definitely carnage. The way I saw it, it covered the entired interstate,” he said.
A van from Furkids, a Georgia-based no-kill animal shelter, was transporting 37 cats to Vermont when it was involved in the crash.
The driver of the van was injured, and 32 of the cats are accounted for, the shelter wrote on Facebook.
“We are conducting triage on all of the cats involved to determine the extent of their injuries and needed medical care. We are doing everything possible to ensure the safety and well-being of both our staff and the animals in our care,” the post said.
Officials have not released any information confirming the identities, only revealing that one of the victims was possibly pregnant, but couldn’t confirm until after an autopsy was completed.
The children ranged between the ages of 2 and 16, the outlet reported.
Hammock, 33, was arrested and charged with eight counts of Vehicular Homicide, one count of Feticide, one count of Following Too Closely, one count of No Registration, and one count of Driver to Exercise Due Care.
He was booked with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office.
The Georgia State Patrol Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team is investigating the crash, while the National Transportation Safety Board and the Georgia State Patrol have opened up a joint safety investigation.
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