Names released in deadly church van crash; tractor-trailer driver charged

BIBB COUNTY, Ga. — Authorities in middle Georgia are releasing the names of the victims in a multi-vehicle crash that left several people dead.

Bibb County deputies said a tractor-trailer was traveling westbound on I-16 on Tuesday evening when it struck a pickup truck, knocking it into other vehicles. The tractor-trailer, pickup truck and some of the other cars then caught fire.

Three people were killed in the crash, two were pronounced dead at the scene, one died at the Navicent Hospital. About 10 other people suffered injuries.

A total of 8 vehicles, including a Dublin Georgia church van, were involved in the accident.

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The driver of the tractor-trailer, Gerard Thompson, has been charged with three counts of vehicular homicide and one count of reckless driving.

WGXA-TV reports one of the fatalities in the crash was an 81-year-old woman in the church van. Another fatality was an 84-year-old man in a Chevrolet Cobalt. A third person was not yet identified.

The van belonged to the Greater New Friendship Baptist Church, which posted on Facebook asking for people to pray for them.

The church will be holding a vigil Thursday night to remember the victims.

Information from WGXA-TV was used in this report.

Cox Media Group