A fatal car crash near the Van Wyck expressway in New York has
claimed the lives of five unidentified people, including two children,
believed to be Nigerian migrants, the New York Times reported.
According to the report, the Nigerian migrants were said to have just
attended a meeting of Nigerians across the United States.
It was a
festive celebration, with cultural dance and discussions of improvement
projects they were sponsoring in their hometown. (so sad!)
The Times reported that mourners were seen at the Jamaica Medical
Center in Queens, New York,
Police are yet to release the identities of the victims, which include an 8-year-old girl and a boy aged nine years old.
The accident reportedly happened early on Sunday morning, at about
3:15 a.m. Police say the ill-fated SUV was speeding. Eyewitnesses say
the vehicle ran two red lights before it crashed on Atlantic Avenue,
east of the major expressway.
Authorities say the vehicle struck a concrete support for the
AirTrain to Kennedy International Airport, it flipped a number of times
before coming to a halt about 80 feet away from the site of impact.
The car then ignited into flames. The driver of the SUV, a
45-year-old man who lives in the Bronx in New York is said to be in
critical condition. Two other passengers, a 26-year-old man and a
7-year-old boy survived in stable condition as well.
“The convention was supposed to bring us together — not end in tragedy,” said Anthony Nwankwo, 49, from Houston.
