The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a three-vehicle crash that killed one person and injured ten others in Marion County on Saturday morning.
At around 10:30 a.m., an SUV was traveling westbound on County Road 484, east of Dunnellon. The FHP incident report stated that the vehicle had two occupants: a 74-year-old male driver and 71-year-old female passenger, both from Ocala.
FHP stated that a second SUV was traveling in front of a third SUV on County Road 484 at the same time, and both vehicles were heading eastbound.
The second SUV had four occupants: a 47-year-old man (driver), 40-year-old woman, a 10-year-old girl, and a 3-year-old boy, all from Texas City, Texas. The third SUV was occupied by a 31-year-old man (driver), 30-year-old woman, 8-year-old boy, 7-year-old girl, and 1-year-old boy, all from Bayton, Texas, according to the FHP report.
For reasons that are still under investigation, FHP stated that the first SUV veered into the eastbound lane of County Road 484, and its left side crashed into the left side of the second SUV.
After the initial impact, the front of the first SUV collided with the front of the third SUV as the second SUV exited the roadway and overturned in a ditch. The first and third SUV proceeded to travel off the roadway, and both vehicles also came to a final rest in a ditch.
The driver of the first SUV was pronounced deceased at the scene by Marion County Fire Rescue. The vehicle’s passenger was transported to a local hospital in critical condition.
The second SUV’s driver and passengers all sustained minor injuries and were transported to a local hospital.
All occupants of the third SUV were also hospitalized for treatment of their injuries. The adult passenger was listed in critical condition, the 8-year-old passenger sustained serious injuries, and the remaining occupants’ injuries were considered minor.
The names of the drivers and passengers involved in the crash were not released by the Florida Highway Patrol.