Wrong-way car crash on Georgia highway leaves 7 dead

By Eric Levenson and Artemis Moshtaghian, CNN

(CNN) -- An SUV crossed the median of a Georgia highway and crashed into a van going the opposite direction, killing seven people and injuring three children, authorities said.

The Georgia State Patrol said a Ford Excursion traveling north on Interstate 85 on Saturday afternoon entered the southbound lanes for unknown reasons. The Excursion struck a Chevrolet van traveling south in the left lane.

That impact caused the Chevrolet van to strike a Ford E350 van in the right lane, authorities said. Two more vehicles also received minor damage from debris.

Two adults and four children from Paulding County, Georgia, were in the Ford Excursion, Franklin County Coroner Scott O'Barr said. The two adults and a 3-year-old child died, and the three other children were injured. One is in critical condition, authorities said.

Four adult Hispanic males from Gainesville, Georgia, in the Chevrolet van were all confirmed dead at the scene, authorities said.

No one in the Ford E350 van was injured.

Authorities are not releasing victims' names yet.

The crash took place in Franklin County in northeast Georgia.

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