On Thursday, May 1st, a Dodge pickup truck collided with a tour van carrying multiple foreign tourists on the highway leading to Yellowstone National Park, resulting in 7 fatalities, including several Chinese citizens, and leaving 8 others injured.
The Idaho State Police stated in a press release that the accident occurred on Thursday evening before 7:15 local time on U.S. Highway 20 near Henry’s Lake State Park in eastern Idaho. The state park is located approximately 16 miles (26 kilometers) west of Yellowstone National Park.
Authorities have not disclosed the specific cause of the crash, but at the time of the accident, the Dodge Ram pickup truck was traveling west while the Mercedes-Benz tour van was heading east towards Yellowstone Park. Video footage from the scene showed clear weather conditions.
According to the police, both vehicles caught fire after the collision. The driver of the pickup truck and the 6 passengers inside the Mercedes van died at the scene. The truck driver was identified on Friday as 25-year-old Isaih Moreno from Humble, Texas. The identities of the other individuals involved are still pending confirmation.
The Associated Press reported that the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in San Francisco stated that five Chinese citizens died in the accident, while eight others were injured.
Brenda Dye, the Coroners Division chief for Fremont County, informed the media that due to the inability to identify the other six bodies, she is awaiting DNA test results to confirm their identities. She mentioned that these six individuals were all from outside the United States, with two of them being from Italy.
It is currently unclear why there is a discrepancy in the numbers provided by the Chinese consulate and the Fremont County coroner.
Police spokesperson Aaron Snell mentioned that the van was carrying 14 passengers, with the survivors being transported to hospitals. According to authorities, two individuals were airlifted to a hospital in Idaho Falls, one was airlifted to a hospital in Bozeman, Montana. The conditions of the injured have not been disclosed. The remaining passengers were taken to local hospitals, with injuries believed to be non-life threatening.
The investigation into the accident is ongoing.
In 2019, a tour bus carrying Chinese tourists overturned near Bryce National Park in southern Utah, resulting in four fatalities and dozens of injuries.