Nine children, including eight girls living in a hostel in a tragic pile in the US state of Alabama, have died, a tragedy that has claimed a total of ten lives.
Butler County Medical Examiner told AFP Sunday that the crash, which occurred Saturday, was “probably” linked to Hurricane Claude, which devastated several states in South America.
Carlock said more than 15 vehicles on I-65 near Greenville were heading north in the incident and may have been due to hydroplaning.
Eight of the ten dead, all girls between the ages of 4 and 17, were in a vehicle on the Tallapoosa County Women’s Farm, a facility that picks up young girls who have been abused or neglected.
The driver was rescued by someone at the scene of the crash, but was unable to separate the passengers alive from the burning vehicle. Photos posted on social media show several meters high and a thick cloud of black smoke.
A father and nine-month-old daughter who were traveling in another vehicle also died after being taken to a local hospital, the medical examiner said.
“Our hearts are heavy today,” Facility Manager Michael Smith wrote on the Facility Girls Ranch Facebook page created by the Sheriff’s Office. “It simply came to our notice then. “
“This is their family”
Residents of the farm, who were traveling in a second vehicle, were not involved in the crash, which left eight girls dead, local news site Al.com reported.
With the support of the pastors, “we are trying to help them,” Michael Smith told Al.com about them. “They were shocked again.”
“Their family is on this farm,” he explained, with the accident, “they lost their family.”
According to Butler County Sheriff Danny Bond, this is the “worst” accident the county has ever seen.
Claude, originally said to be a hurricane, was pushed into a state of tropical depression as it reached the coasts of the United States.
However, strong winds and heavy rain lashed Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama and Georgia.
Images from local television stations show that Gladdie has also caused hurricanes in places that have cut down trees, overturned cars and even destroyed mobile homes.
In addition to the pile, Tuscaloosa (Alabama) City Councilman Gip Diner confirmed on Cladette’s visit on Facebook on Saturday that two more people had died.
A 24-year-old man and his 3-year-old son were killed when they fell from a tree, according to a sheriff’s office member quoted by the Tuscaloosa News site.
According to Gip Diner, it rained more than 18cm in a few hours in Tuscaloosa County.
In Louisiana, the National Weather Service (NWS) reported up to 35 cm of rain near New Orleans.
Sudden and heavy rains caused flooding in many parts of the region.
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