Two young Provo siblings were struck and killed Monday morning as they walked to elementary school together. The driver of the vehicle that hit them also died, police said.
The crash happened at about 8:06 a.m. Monday. The 9-year-old girl and her 10-year-old brother were headed to Wasatch Elementary School when the driver of an SUV traveling west on 700 North apparently veered into oncoming traffic, then drove up onto a sidewalk “for unknown reasons,” according to Provo police.
On the sidewalk, the SUV struck the children and continued through an adjacent yard, hitting a house and rupturing a gas line.
The children and the 59-year old man who was driving the vehicle were taken to a hospital, where they were pronounced dead.
Police later identified the driver as Darren Albertson, of Provo. Police did not immediately identify the children killed but described them as brother and sister.
“Our community is grieving today,” Provo City tweeted “We are heartbroken at the tragic loss and our prayers go out to the families and friends at this difficult time.”
A GoFundMe page has been set up for the family of the children. As of Tuesday morning, it had nearly doubled its $20,000 goal, raising more than $40,000.
Dominion Energy responded to the scene of the crash to make repairs to the ruptured gas line. Police said education officials are coordinating grief counseling services for “impacted school communities.”
It remained unclear as of Tuesday whether impairment may have been a factor in the crash, or whether the driver may have suffered a medical episode. The cause of the deadly wreck remains under investigation, according to police.
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