UPDATE: 5 killed in Thanksgiving Day crash in Colquitt County

COLQUITT COUNTY, Ga. (WALB) - At least five people are dead after a head-on collision in Colquitt County Thursday afternoon. That’s according to the Colquitt County coroner.

“I was in the house and I heard a terrible explosion,” said Leon Spurlin, a witness.

What sounded like an explosion to some neighbors was actually the sound of a crash happening right outside their homes.

Around 3 p.m. on Thanksgiving day, a white van and a ram truck were involved in a head-on crash on Highway 111 south of Bay Rockyford Road. The white van was carrying 10 people while the ram truck had one driver. Five people in the white van were killed upon impact—leaving six survivors including the driver of the ram truck.

“They had to cut the door off the truck to get the man out of the truck. (It’s) just a terrible crash you know,” Spurlin said.

Four passengers who were riding in the van were life-flighted to local trauma centers in Thomasville and Tallahassee, Florida.

According to Colquitt Co. Corner Verlyn Brock, the victims have been identified as Emiliano Ramon, 58, Anna Rodriquez, 61, Jose Moreno, 73, Herlinda Sel-Choc, 25, and Anderson Sel, 3, a mother and son.

Georgia State Patrol troopers said this was one of the deadliest crashes they’ve seen in Colquitt County.

“It’s just a terrible situation. I just feel so sorry for those families involved. All of them,” Spurlin said. “It’s a terrible thing to happen, especially during the holidays.”

While the cause of this accident is still under investigation, Georgia State Troopers are still reminding drivers to put down their phones behind the wheel, put their seat belts on, and watch their speeds during this holiday travel time.

The deaths in Thomasville add to the statewide total of traffic deaths on Thanksgiving Day being eight, according to the Georgia Department of Public Safety.