6 dead in Michigan after truck crashes into van carrying members of Amish group

A pickup truck went through a stop sign in rural Michigan and crashed into a van carrying members of an Amish community, killing at least six people, authorities said.

The crash occurred Tuesday afternoon in Tuscola County’s Gilford Township, 100 miles (161 kilometers) north of Detroit.

Thirteen people were in the two vehicles, including 10 in the van, the sheriff’s office said.

“Multiple passengers were ejected from the van and the pickup,” the sheriff’s office said on Facebook. “At this time there are 6 confirmed fatalities and the condition of the additional patients is unknown.”

Members of a local Amish community were in the van, Undersheriff Robert Baxter said Wednesday.

“They had a paid driver in the van,” he told The Associated Press. “I’m not sure where they were headed or where they were coming from. They’re county residents.”

Baxter said seven people were taken to a hospital. He had no update on their conditions.

The Amish generally follow basic Christian beliefs while maintaining a degree of separation from common society. They typically rely on horse-drawn buggies for transportation and do not operate their own cars or trucks but will ride in vehicles driven by people who are not Amish.

In a separate tragedy Tuesday in western Michigan, a 4-month-old girl died after a crash involving a pickup truck and an Amish buggy, state police said. There were four other children and two adults in the buggy.

A 2-year-old boy was in critical condition, police said.

“This tragic crash is a sobering reminder to drive with patience and caution in areas where horse-and-buggy travel is a way of life,” police said.

About 61% of North America’s Amish population lives in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Indiana, according to Elizabethtown College, though Michigan also has a relatively large share.