ISP: I-70 EB crash kills girl; 4 others injured

INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana State Police are investigating a crash that killed a juvenile girl and injured four others on I-70 eastbound Thursday night.

According to public police records, ISP troopers were dispatched around 8:30 p.m. to the scene of a fatal crash between Meridian Street and Madison Avenue. ISP said the collision seriously injured five people, two adults and three children.

ISP confirmed that the injured individuals had been transported to Indianapolis area hospitals for treatment. A 7-year-old girl was later pronounced dead at the hospital. The Marion County Coroner’s Office identified her as Genesis Turcios Reyes.

According to ISP, a van that two adults and three children occupied was disabled in the left lane of I-70 when a semi-tractor trailer struck the back of the stopped van.

Investigators believe the reason the van was stopped in the lane was due to a flat tire, and there is no left-side shoulder on this portion of the interstate large enough to pull a vehicle out of the road.

FOX59/CBS4 spoke with the victim’s family. They said they were going to a relative’s house for dinner Thursday night before one of the tires on their van became flat.

The father shared the heartbreaking details in Spanish.

”I’m on the freeway and I don’t want them to kill my kids, so I start waving at other cars to stay away from the van,” said Jose Candelario Turcios Martinez.

He said Genesis’ 7th birthday was the day before on June 26.

“When I would come home from work, she’d give me a kiss. She’d get up in the mornings and give me a kiss,” Martinez said. “She would tell me she’s going to be a pastor.”

Her father said while he will miss her dearly, he knows she is in good hands.

“I know my daughter’s with God because she served in church,” he said. “She was an evangelist on Mondays and Saturdays.”

The crash is still under investigation and the left lanes of I-70 were shut down for nearly five hours. The extent of the injuries of the other people in the van is unknown, but they are all in stable condition and the driver of the semi was not injured.

ISP does not believe that alcohol, nor drugs were a factor in the crash by either involved driver.

To donate to the family’s funeral expenses, click here .

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