BROWARD COUNTY, Fla. – One person was killed and 16 others were injured Tuesday afternoon in a crash on Alligator Alley in Broward County.
Battalion Chief Michael Kane, a spokesman for Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue, said a pickup truck rear-ended a van just before 6 p.m. on the Alligator Alley stretch of Interstate 75 in unincorporated Broward County near Fort Lauderdale.
The crash sent the van rolling into the center median of the highway and threw several passengers from the vehicle, Kane said. Authorities said they were still investigating what caused the crash.
Lt. Alvaro Feola, a spokesman for the Florida Highway Patrol, said the van was full of friends and family from Fort Lauderdale. They were returning home from a baseball tournament in Fort Myers when the crash happened, Feola said.
One of the victims, a 45-year-old woman, was was pinned under the van and passerbys used a floor-jack to get her free, Kane said.
One person, who was not identified, was pronounced dead at the scene, Kane said.
Kane said 12 people were taken to hospitals, six of whom were airlifted to Broward Health Medical Center. Four people were treated for minor injuries at the scene. The injured victims ranged in age from 10 to 18, Feola said.
Multiple agencies assisted authorities in Broward County, including Miami-Dade Fire Rescue and Palm Beach County Fire Rescue.