A semi-truck crashed into a passenger van in the U.S. state of Oregon, killing seven people and injuring four others, police said on Friday.

Lincoln Clayton Smith, a 52-year-old California trucker, drove a semi-truck Thursday afternoon on I-5, about 16 kilometers north of Albany, when he struck a passenger van with 11 people inside, the Oregon State Police said.

Six adults inside the van were dead at the scene. A seventh victim was taken to a hospital and died there.

The rest four people in the van were injured and taken to a hospital for treatment. Smith was not injured.

"The force of the crash caused extreme damage to the passenger van," the Oregon State Police said in a news release.

Smith was arrested and booked into the Marion County Jail. He was charged with driving under the influence and seven counts of manslaughter, and was also facing charges of reckless driving and third-degree assault.

The crash marks one of the deadliest collisions in Oregon in recent years. A fatal crash in Harney County in August 2018 killed eight people, according to the Oregon Department of Transportation.

Source:
courtesy of XINHUA NEWS AGENCY

by XINHUA NEWS AGENCY

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