4 children, 3 young adults killed by runaway trailer

A runaway trailer hauling crushed cars slammed into a minivan carrying two families in upstate New York, killing four young children and three adults in their early 20s, authorities said Thursday.

All seven victims, including four children ages 4 to 7, were killed and a man was injured when their van was hit by a trailer that broke away from a truck on Route 13 around 6 p.m. Wednesday in the rural town of Truxton, about 25 miles south of Syracuse.

The accident claimed the lives of 26-year-old Teresa Bush and her daughters, 4-year-old Alexis and Jasmine, 5. Also killed were 21-year-old Lena Beckwith; Carino Vanorden, 24; Alyssa Mead, 7; and Tyler Mead, 4.

Shawn Mead, the father of the two Mead children, survived and was transported to Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse where he was in good condition.

All of the victims were from the local area.

A posting on a Facebook page that apparently belonged to Beckwith, showed she and Vanorden had been engaged since 2011.

Officials said the trailer disconnected from the southbound rig and slammed into the northbound van, ripping it apart. Both vehicles came to rest on the shoulder of the two-lane road.

Ken Stone, first assistant fire chief of Truxton, was one of about 20 firefighters who responded. He said the van’s driver saw the trailer coming and drove off the road trying to avoid it.

“They tried to miss it, but he ran out of time,” said Stone. “All of a sudden, a trailer is coming at you and there’s no truck on it.

“Tore it right apart,” he said. “It was humbling, especially young kids. It tears you up.”

Stone said a couple of victims were under the trailer, which had to be jacked up to get them out.

“It was all instant, no doubt,” he said.

Family members gathered Thursday morning at a farmhouse about a mile from the accident site. Adults were in groups talking while children bounced on a trampoline. A woman who met reporters asked for privacy and said the family would talk when they are ready. Knocks on doors went unanswered at several residences connected to the victims.

A person who answered the phone at Vanorden’s declined to comment.

Sheriff’s Capt. Mark Helms said two people in the truck were not injured. The cause of the accident is still being investigated and authorities are looking at everything from mechanical failure to driver actions.

The Newton Salvage truck was driven by Ryan Dorward, 26, of Manlius, who was accompanied by Duane Newton. Messages left with Newton and the Georgetown, N.Y.-based salvage company were not returned Thursday afternoon.

In New York, trucks are required to be inspected at least once a year and are subjected to random roadside checks by the Department of Transportation or state troopers, said Jennifer Post, spokeswoman for the DOT. Drivers are also required to do a “walk-around” inspection of their trucks every time they make a trip, checking — among other things — tire pressure and condition, brakes and the coupling between truck and trailer.