Five children not wearing seat belts die in minivan crash but two adults survive

Five children who weren’t wearing seat belts have died after being thrown from the car they were travelling in.

The children, aged between 5 and 15, were killed when they were flung from a minivan that crashed into trees and ended up in a field in Bowie, Maryland on Saturday.

Two adults who were also travelling in the vehicle, and who were reportedly wearing seat belts, survived the crash.

It is understood all five children were sitting in the back seat of the Chrysler Pacifica when the accident happened.

They were named as sisters Paris and London Dixon, aged five and eight respectively, along with Zion Beard, 14, Rickelle Ricks, six, and Damari Herald, 15.

Paris and London were in the vehicle with their mother, Dominique R Taylor, 32, who was believed to be the driver. She was taken to hospital.

The car went off the road at about 4.30am on Saturday and hit several trees.

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Paris and London lived in Bowie and went to Northview Elementary School, it was reported. The other three children were from Washington DC.

Cornell D Simon, 23, of Oxon Hill, was the other adult in the car and police say he is in a critical condition in hospital.

Police are trying to establish what caused the crash.

Maryland had experienced icy conditions on its roads at the weekend, but police have not said if conditions contributed to the crash.

The road was closed for more than seven hours after the crash.

“Every collision where we lose life is a tragedy,” said Maryland State Trooper Captain Daniel Pickett.

“And where children are involved, it’s more of a tragedy.”