NJ father, 4 daughters killed in Delaware crash identified
TOWNSEND, Del. (WTXF) - Officials have identified the five members of a New Jersey family who were killed in a multi-vehicle crash on Friday in Townsend, Delaware.
61-year-old Audie Trinidad of Teaneck, New Jersey and his children--20-year-old Kaitlyn, 17-year-old Danna and 13-year-olds Melissa and Allison--were identified as the deceased.
Trinidad's 53-year-old wife, Mary Rose, remains hospitalized with serious injuries. Police say the husband and wife were properly restrained with seat belts, but their four daughters were not.
"They're all gone now. That's it. In one big sweep," said Audie's brother Danny Trinidad.
The accident took place just before 4 p.m. Friday. According to police, a pickup truck was traveling southbound on Route 1 north of Pine Tree Road when it crossed the center median. Investigators don't know why the driver crossed over. The truck went into oncoming traffic and hit a car.
The car, which spun out of control, came to rest on the median, while the pickup truck continued to travel southbound in the northbound lanes. The pickup truck was hit by the Toyota Sienna minivan carrying the New Jersey family.
The wrong way driver who hit the family's minivan--44-year-old Alvin Hubbard Jr. from East New Market, Maryland--was treated and released from the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Investigators are looking into whether Hubbard was impaired or under the influence. Hubbard's pickup truck had a logo on the side of a Maryland based welding company Aledak Metalworks, Incorporated. Calls and messages left for the owner have not yet been returned.
A passenger in the truck, a 30-year-old man from Hurlock, Maryland, was also treated and released.
The driver of the car, 24-year-old Brian Kern from Bethlehem, Pa., was transported to the hospital where he was treated and released.
"It's certainly heartbreaking. As you can imagine those of us that have family and children I feel so bad for this family," said Master Corporal Jaffe. "I cannot imagine what they're going through. To lose four children in a crash is just something that's unheard of."
A GoFundMe has been set up on behalf of the mother, Mary Rose.