MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A day care van went out of control on an interstate and crashed Thursday, killing the driver and four children and critically injuring two other youngsters.
The van, which belonged to Tippy Toes Learning Academy, crashed about four miles from the day care center.
The driver and two girls died at the scene, and two boys, ages 10 and 8, died at LeBonheur Children's Center, hospital spokeswoman Janet Phillips said.
Two other boys, ages 10 and 11, remain in critical condition at the hospital with multiple injuries, Phillips said.
The names of the dead and injured were not released pending notification of relatives.
Deputy Chief Charles Cook said the crash happened about 9 a.m. The van was traveling southbound on Interstate 240 when it left the roadway and straddled a low guard rail along the road's shoulder for several feet.
The van then hit a utility pole, turned on its side and slammed into an embankment at the foot of an interstate overpass.
"It does appear that speed was involved," Cook told WREG-TV, adding no other vehicles were involved. The weather was sunny and clear.
Cook said all the children were apparently wearing seat belts or were in safety seats, but the driver may not have been wearing a seat belt.
The interstate was closed for about two hours.
A state registry of day care centers shows Tippy Toes Learning Academy can care for up to 62 children, ages 6 weeks to 12 years old.
After the accident, police blocked the day care center's parking lot, and there were no children playing outside the brightly painted brick building. A van bore the slogan "a home away from home."
The deaths come nearly three years after two Memphis toddlers died of heatstroke when they were left alone in vans belonging to two different centers. The state passed a law that tightened day care rules, largely because of those deaths.
