A fourth passenger has been pronounced dead as of Wednesday afternoon. This means that a total of four people are dead and 11 are injured after a rollover crash in the Wise County city of Alvord on Wednesday morning.
Several agencies responded to a crash on Highway 287 in Wise County around 8 a.m. Wednesday when police say a van lost control.
"The van was travelling northbound, it veered into the median," Texas Department of Public Safety Sergeant Tony De La Cerda said. "The driver then overcorrected to the opposite side, which caused the vehicle to side skid and roll over multiple times."
Fourteen people were riding in the van. Three died at the scene; eleven others went to the hospital, three by helicopter and eight by ambulance. One died from their injuries later Wednesday.
De La Cerda said several people were ejected from the van. He said only one person was wearing a seat belt, and that person only went to the hospital as a precaution.
"We emphasize that every holiday, every weekend, every day: wearing your seat belt is going to save your life," he said. "In this case, only one person was wearing their seat belt and was able to walk away."
Three of the 11 who went to the hospital were in critical condition.
The northbound side of Highway 287 was closed for several hours and reopened early Wednesday afternoon.
DPS said the van was registered in Florida. State police are leading the investigation, and De La Cerda said they are now looking at where the van was going and why the driver might have lost control.
This investigation is ongoing as medical examiners look to identify all 14 passengers.