At Least 5 Dead, 4 Seriously Injured After Truck Crashes Into Bicyclists in Michigan, Officials Say
Four more people were injured in the Michigan accident and sent to the hospital.
— -- At least five people were killed and four more were sent to the hospital after a pickup truck hit a group of cyclists in Kalamazoo, Michigan, on Tuesday evening, according to officials.
Nine cyclists were struck from behind by a Blue Chevy pickup as they were traveling north bound on the shoulder of the northbound lane in Cooper Township, said Kalamazoo County Prosecuting Attorney Jeffrey Getting.
All nine cyclists were adults. The four survivors were transported to the hospital with serious injuries but Getting wouldn't elaborate on the extent of their injuries.
The driver was found a short distance away by police. The suspect is a 50-year-old man but police are not releasing his name until charges are filed, Getting said.
The suspect was being kept in custody by police.
The victims have not been identified pending family notification, police said, noting that they are still working to ID some of the cyclists.
A witness near the scene told ABC's Kalamazoo affiliate WZZM that the bicyclists are part of a group that goes on weekly rides.
Multiple police and fire crews were at the scene, including Michigan State Police, to assist the victims and conduct an investigation.
"We are really struggling with the loss," Mark Irwin, of the Kalamazoo Bicycle Club, told ABC News today, adding that they are relying on the media for information because they do not even know the victims' names yet.
Irwin added that it was not one of their regularly scheduled rides, and that they would leave the identification of victims up to authorities and their families.