Four U.S. citizens were reportedly among those caught up in a devastating, fire-scarred chain-reaction crash in Mexico that killed at least 10 people and injured roughly 10 others.
The large pileup occurred Sunday on a highway in the western state of Jalisco, after a tractor-trailer slammed into several vehicles, the Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection of Nayarit said.
The Nayarit agency put the death toll at 10, while Mexico’s Army, Air Force and National Guard reported that nine people had died.
Jalisco Civil Protection told Reuters that four Americans sustained minor injuries and were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.
A vehicle was left burned out and badly twisted after the deadly multi-vehicle crash in Jalisco, Mexico, on Sunday. (Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection of Nayarit)
“Four patients in minor condition, all U.S. citizens, were transferred to the Arboledas Hospital in Guadalajara by a private ambulance from the highway,” Jalisco Civil Protection said.
According to Reuters, two of the people who died were minors.
Reuters also reported that two additional injured people were National Guard members, both seriously hurt and transported to a hospital in Guadalajara.
Videos circulating on social media appeared to show several vehicles engulfed in flames along the highway connecting Guadalajara and Tepic, sending multiple plumes of black smoke into the air.
A firefighter works to douse the smoking engine of a destroyed vehicle after a devastating highway collision in Jalisco, Mexico, on Sunday. (Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection of Nayarit)
According to Mexican officials, the crash happened when a tractor-trailer apparently suffered a brake failure and slammed into a line of vehicles that had stopped because of an earlier accident.
“According to initial reports, a trailer reportedly suffered a failure in its braking system and ended up crashing into several vehicles that were stopped due to a prior incident,” Mexico’s Army, Air Force and National Guard said in a post on X.
The initial accident reportedly involved a rear-end collision between two tractor-trailers. As emergency crews responded, a third tractor-trailer crashed into the scene, according to the Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection of Nayarit.
“As a result of this second impact, three private vehicles and two tractor-trailer trucks were completely destroyed by the fire,” the authorities said. “Additionally, two other private vehicles and an official Dodge Charger unit belonging to the National Guard sustained material damage. “
Mexican authorities inspect the incinerated frame of a tractor-trailer on a highway connecting Guadalajara and Tepic in Jalisco, Mexico, on Sunday. (Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection of Nayarit)
Firefighters later extinguished the blaze, officials said.
Local outlet El Financiero reported that the driver of the tractor-trailer was detained by the National Guard.
