Metro

At least five killed, eight injured in upstate crash

BENTON, N.Y. — At least five people were killed and eight injured Tuesday after a van full of Mennonite farmers collided with another vehicle in upstate New York.

The fatal accident occurred just before 1:00pm local time in Benton, N.Y., a small town in Yates County about 50 miles southeast of Rochester, the Democrat and Chronicle reported.

Yates County Sheriff Ronald Spike told the paper about 15 people were involved in the crash and at least four had been trapped in the wreckage.

“I’ve seen a lot of fatalities, but not like this,” Spike said. “There were bodies all over the place; just a horrific tragedy.”

The farmers, from nearby Steuben County, were traveling north when their van collided with an oncoming vehicle that was trying to pass a slow-moving farm tractor. The van then got pinned beneath the tractor.

Five of the wounded were transported to Strong Memorial Hospital, which is part of the University of Rochester Medical Center, spokeswoman Karin Christensen told the Democrat and Chronicle.

The Penn Yan Chronicle-Express reported that five helicopters, several fire departments and at least 10 ambulances were called to the scene.

This is the second deadly crash in the region in just days following a tour bus accident in Steuben County that killed two and injured 35 Sunday.