6 dead in Idaho crash were farm workers from Mexico, officials say

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho. (AP) — Six people killed Saturday in Idaho when a pickup truck collided with a minivan were farm workers from Mexico, officials said.

The Mexican Foreign Ministry said in a press release that the minibus’ passengers were all agricultural workers from Mexico who were in the United States on H-2A visas for temporary work in agriculture, the East Idaho News reported Thursday.

The accident occurred early on the morning of May 18 when a pickup truck crossed the center line of U.S. Highway 20 and collided with the van in Idaho Falls, according to Idaho State Police. The driver of the van and five passengers died at the scene.

Bonneville County Coroner Rick Taylor identified the victims as Abel Mejía Martínez, 43, Pedro Manuel Alcantar Mejía, 26, Brandon Ponce Gallegos, 24, Jose Guadalupe Sánchez Medina, 20, Luis Enrique Sereno Perez, 32, and Javier Gomez Alcantar, 36.

Nine other passengers in the van and the driver of the pickup truck were taken to hospital, police said.

Signet, the company that employed the workers, is raising money on GoFundMe and donated $10,000.

“Our hearts are heavy with sadness as we mourn the loss of six beloved members of our team who tragically lost their lives in a devastating car accident on May 18 in Idaho,” organizers wrote. “In addition to this grave loss, nine of our colleagues sustained injuries whose lives were forever changed by the events of that day.”

The money collected will be donated to the injured and the families of the victims, the GoFundMe page said.

The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press Thursday evening. It was not immediately clear whether Signet was the owner of the crashed van or whether the van had seat belts.

Signet has been providing construction services for projects of all sizes since 1994 and has an agricultural division, according to the company’s website.

The Mexican consulate in Boise has announced that it will help the families of the deceased.

Earlier this month, a pickup truck crashed into a bus carrying farm workers in Florida, killing eight workers.