Tour van and pickup truck collide near Yellowstone National Park, killing 7 people

A pickup truck and tour van collision near Yellowstone National Park has killed seven people and injured eight others, the Idaho State Police said.

The crash happened Thursday just before 7:15 p.m. on a highway near Henry’s Lake State Park in eastern Idaho. The state park is roughly 16 miles west of Yellowstone National Park.

Both vehicles caught fire after the crash, the Idaho State Police said in a news release. The driver of the Dodge Ram pickup and six people inside the Mercedes passenger van died. The van was carrying a tour group of 14 people, and the surviving occupants were taken to hospitals with injuries, police spokesman Aaron Snell said.

State police on Friday identified the driver as Isaih Moreno, 25, of Humble, Texas. 

An image provided to The Associated Press by witness Roger Merrill showed the aftermath of the crash, with flames and smoke emanating from the wreckage.

Merrill, 60, was driving home when he saw the flames engulfing the two vehicles as bystanders tried to care for survivors from the van on the side of the highway. Merrill said he often sees tourist vans on the highway that leads to Yellowstone National Park.

“It is a very dangerous highway because it leads to the main entrance of Yellowstone National Park,” he said. “It’s extremely busy.”

Due to the remote location, Merrill said he anxiously awaited the help of first responders.

“Due to the severity of the injuries, one air ambulance and additional air and ground resources were dispatched,” police said. In a later update, state police said three occupants of the van were flown to Bozeman, Montana, and two others to Idaho Falls, Idaho. The other individuals were taken to area hospitals with injuries believed to be non-life-threatening.

Authorities have not said what led to the crash on U.S. Highway 20, which remains under investigation. 

“The Dodge Ram was traveling westbound (southbound on a map), while the Mercedes van was traveling eastbound (northbound on a map) toward Yellowstone National Park,” state police said.

Police said Highway 20 was fully closed while first responders investigated the incident. The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office said on social media that the highway had reopened.

“Due to the complexity of the incident, the identification of all individuals involved and notification of their next of kin will take time. ISP will continue to provide verified information on behalf of the Fremont County Coroner’s Office as it becomes available,” police said.

The crash happened less than a year after six people were killed when a pickup crashed into a passenger van on the same highway in Idaho.