13-Year-Old Drove Father’s Pickup in Fiery Crash That Killed 9: NTSB Official

A damaged pickup truck sits on the side of the road at the scene of a fatal car wreck in Andrews County, Texas, on March 16, 2022. Eli Hartman/Odessa American via AP

A 13-year-old boy was driving the pickup truck that collided head-on with a minibus on Tuesday, killing six students of a New Mexico university, their head coach, and both occupants of the pickup truck, authorities said.

During a Thursday news conference, the vice-chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Bruce Landsberg, said a preliminary investigation revealed that the pickup truck had a spare wheel in place of its left front tire, which was blown out before impact, causing the truck to swerve in front of the minibus.