Last Tuesday, nine people, including a golf coach and six students from the University of the Southwest, a private Christian college, died in a fiery car crash.
According to the Associated Press, Sargent Steven Blanco of the Texas Department of Public Safety said the USW students and their coach were heading home from a golf tournament when a 2007 Dodge 2500 pickup truck crossed the centerline of a two-lane road in Andrews County, Texas and collided with the team’s van.
Henrich Siemans, 38, and an unidentified 13-year-old who were traveling in the pickup truck were killed in the crash. According to USA Today, National Transportation Safety Board Vice Chairman Bruce Landsberg confirmed during a news conference that the 13-year-old was driving the pickup truck.
Golf coach Tyler James, 26; and players Mauricio Sanchez, 19; Travis Garcia, 19; Jackson Zinn, 22; Karisa Raines, 21; Laci Stone, 18; and Tiago Sousa, 18, were also killed. Two other students, Dayton Price, 19; and Hayden Underhill, 20, were hospitalized and are in critical condition.
After hearing the news of the crash, USW released a statement asking for prayers for the victims’ families.
USW is located in Hobbs, New Mexico, near the New Mexico-Texas border.