Albany Oregon crash: Horror smash kills seven as ‘drunk’ truck driver hits passenger van

Seven people have been killed in a horror smash after a semi truck hit a van carrying 11 passengers.

A driver has been arrested for manslaughter and driving under the influence after one of the deadliest car crashes to hit the area in recent years.

Eleven people were said to have been in the van when it was struck, according to authorities. Six died at the scene, one more died after being airlifted to hospital and four were injured, according to police.

The husband of one of the dead passengers spoke of how their one-year-old son had asked for his mother on Friday, May 19.

“My future is destroyed,” he said to the Salem Statesman Journal through an interpreter.

Lincoln Clayton Smith, 52, of North Highlands, California, was arrested on Friday, May 19, on suspicion of driving under the influence of intoxicants, reckless driving, manslaughter and assault, police have said.

The US state of Oregon is reeling from the horror smash that involved two semi trucks and a passenger van on Interstate 5 on Thursday afternoon, May 18, shortly after 2pm, around seven miles north of Albany.

Oregon State Police confirmed that seven adults had died in the crash and several others were injured.

The truck being driven by the suspect left the northbound lanes of the I-5 and hit the van as it was parked on the roadside, according to police. The van was then pushed into the back of another truck which was parked in front of it.

He was arraigned Friday afternoon and was being held without bail in Marion County Jail.

At the arraignment, a district attorney said Smith had refused a field sobriety test and was unable to focus and answer basic questions, according to the Salem Statesman Journal.

The prosecutor also said Smith acknowledged taking ‘speed’ the day before the crash and was in possession of methamphetamine, according to the outlet. Charging documents say he was under the influence of a controlled substance and an inhalant.

Smith reportedly has a lengthy criminal history consisting of at least 17 prior arrests and nine convictions for crimes ranging from burglary to providing false information, Deputy District Attorney David Wilson told reporters.

It is believed the van was transporting argicultural workers who work for a local labour contract company, police have said. Smith was reportedly taken from the scene for medical treatment before being arrested.

Life Flight Network confirmed that one of its emergency medical helicopters transported one patient to a nearby Salem-area hospital. Motorists at the scene described the crash as disturbing.

“Everyone was over there working, and you could just see the stress and stuff on, especially a lot of the officer, like the police,” motorist Phil Price told abc’s KATU2. “You could see a lot of emotion, so you know something was really wrong over there.”

Bodies covered in plastic could reportedly be seen in a nearby field, with the Marion County medical examiner spotted at the scene. Police and fire officials were seen putting ablue tarp over the wrecked van, and putting a barrier in place near one of the trucks to block the view of the scene, according to the Democrat-Herald.

A witness, speaking to the Statesman Journal, said the van appeared to have been crushed between the two trucks. “Judging by the damage, it looks like the van was sandwiched,” said Adrian Gonzalez. “It got hit very hard.”

Phil Price told KOIN-TV the scene was heartbreaking. “My first [thought] was, ‘I hope there were no fatalities’, and of course, there were quite a few, so it’s even more disturbing because everyone has their familiy and they go to lose somebody today.”

The northbound lanes of I-5 were closed for hours as experts investigated, but reopened on Thursday night, according to state transportation officials.

Smith is scheduled to next appear in court on May 30. Judge Lindsay Partridge did not set bail.