Five women from the Dallas area were killed in a horrific crash last week while traveling to celebrate a birthday.
CBS News Texas has learned the victims were all in their early 20s. The group was on a weekend trip to the Central Texas community of Kingsland to celebrate Thalia Salinas’ 23rd birthday.
Crash occurred north of Austin
According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, the head-on collision happened in Burnet County on U.S. 281 near Park Road. Investigators say a truck pulling a livestock trailer veered into oncoming traffic, striking several vehicles.
The car carrying the five women flipped and caught fire.
Victims were lifelong friends
The victims have been identified as Thalia Salinas, Ruby Cruz, Brianna Valadez, Desiree Cervantez, and Jacqueline Velazco. Thalia’s family said the five were like sisters and had been friends since middle school.
Family devastated by sudden loss
In a statement, Thalia’s family said: “Words can’t describe how devastated we are. We were en route to celebrate Thalia’s birthday in Kingsland, Texas, at her favorite place — on the lake — with all her favorite people. Then we got news of the girls passing away in the worst accident we could ever imagine. We will never recover from losing Thalia, Brianna, Ruby, Jackie and Desi.”
Investigation remains ongoing
DPS says the crash remains under investigation. No further details about the truck driver or potential charges have been released…