Authorities ID 4 people killed in fiery car crash in Arizona

SEDONA, Ariz. - Four people who died in a fiery crash involving a passenger car and a tractor-tractor near the northern Arizona city of Sedona have been identified, authorities said on Sept. 20.

Arizona Department of Public Safety officials said the victims of Sunday’s crash were 24-year-old Athish Nagarajan and 23-year-old Dhinesh Nagarajan — both of Tempe — and 53-year-old Gnanappan Nagarajan and 45-year-old Vijaya Lakshmi-Gopal who were visiting from India.

It wasn’t immediately clear how the four people were related.

DPS officials said the driver of the big rig told troopers that the brakes failed and he couldn’t stop when he got off Interstate 17 at the Sedona exit.

According to DPS, the semi-truck drove through a stop sign and collided with a car, sending both vehicles down an embankment.

DPS officials said the tractor-trailer landed on top of the car and erupted in flames.

The truck driver was able to escape uninjured, but the four people inside the car were trapped and declared dead at the scene, according to authorities who said the crash remains under investigation.

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