Three people were killed and four were severely injured when an SUV crashed into a tree on the Baltimore-Washington Parkway in Beltsville.
The crash happened at about 2:15 a.m. when an SUV driving south on the parkway near Powder Mill Road left the roadway and struck a large tree, according to Prince George’s County fire and emergency services.
The violent crash caused several people to be ejected from the vehicle; others were trapped in the wreckage.
The fire department said an adult woman and a teenage girl were pronounced dead at the scene of the crash. A 3-month-old baby was hospitalized, but died, fire officials said.
Four others — an adult man and three young children — are hospitalized in critical condition, authorities said.
The circumstances of the crash are still under investigation. No information was available about the victims’ identities. The people in the car are believed to be related, and authorities are still notifying other family members, said Sgt. David Schlosser, spokesman for U.S. Park Police.
No other cars were involved in the crash, he said.
The fire department called the crash scene “horrific” and said in a statement that the accident “was troubling for even the most seasoned first responders.”
The southbound lanes of the parkway were closed for about five hours after the crash.
