5 women killed when tractor-trailer hits minivan that crashed on snowy highway

DUNMORE, Pa. — Five women were killed on Tuesday when a minivan, which had crashed on a northeastern Pennsylvania interstate, was struck by a tractor-trailer in snowy conditions, authorities said.

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Four of the women, who were from New York, were in a 2022 Honda Odyssey minivan that went out of control on northbound Interstate 81 in Lackawanna County, the Patriot-News reported. The fifth victim was from a vehicle containing two relatives who stopped to help.

According to the Pennsylvania State Police, the victims were identified as Harvrist Zebari, 42, of Endwell; Fatma Ahmed, 71, of Binghamton; Shahzinaz Mizouri, 56, of Vestal; Berivan Zebara, 43, of Johnson City; and Aleen Ameen, 19, of Johnson City, according to the newspaper. All were pronounced dead at the scene.

State police said the minivan lost control on the interstate and collided with a concrete divider on the west berm of the highway shortly after 5 p.m. EST, WIVT-TV reported. After the crash, an Audi A6 driven by a relative of the women, Parjan Ameen, 22, of Johnson City, stopped on the right shoulder of the interstate and crossed two lanes to reach the group, according to the television station.

That is when the tractor-trailer, also traveling northbound, struck the driver’s side of the Odyssey, WBRE-TV reported. The impact killed three of the people standing on the highway and two of the women still inside the minivan, according to The Associated Press.

According to state police, Parjan Ameen sustained “moderate injuries,” according to the television station. The driver of the tractor-trailer sustained minor injuries, WIVT reported.

Pennsylvania State Police are still investigating the crash, according to the television station.

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