The Eyrie

ORLANDO, FL — A mother in Florida is mourning the loss of three adult children after a fiery crash on the Florida Turnpike killed six people over the weekend. The deadly wreck involved a 2023 Chevrolet Traverse and a Florida Highway Patrol roadside assistance truck, according to investigators.

The collision happened Friday evening and sent both vehicles off the road. The Traverse then caught fire, trapping everyone inside. All six passengers in the SUV died, including siblings Charles, Jakara and Dalvena, whose mother, Marshall Clarke-Milton, said she struggled to reach them that night before learning about the crash.

How the fatal crash unfolded on the Florida Turnpike

Authorities say the Chevrolet Traverse struck the roadside assistance truck before both vehicles left the roadway. The impact and fire turned the crash into a mass fatality scene in a matter of moments. The Florida Highway Patrol has said the collision remains under review as investigators piece together what happened.

The vehicle fire trapped the six passengers inside the Traverse, leaving no survivors from that SUV. The roadside assistance truck was also involved in the crash, though the focus so far has been on the deadly chain of events that followed the initial impact. Officials have not publicly detailed the circumstances that led to the collision.

Because the crash ended in flames and multiple deaths, it has drawn attention beyond the highway itself. Investigators are now working to determine the sequence of events, including how the two vehicles came together and what factors may have contributed.

A mother learns her three adult children were among the dead

Clarke-Milton said she sensed something was wrong when she could not get in touch with her children that night. After hearing about the crash, she contacted officials and began searching for answers. Her children were later identified as Charles, Jakara and Dalvena.

She told FOX 35 Orlando that the family was devastated by the loss. The three siblings were among the six people killed in the wreck, making the crash especially painful for relatives trying to understand how an ordinary night turned tragic so quickly.

Her comments put a human face on a crash that had already become a grim highway headline. The family’s grief has now become part of the broader public picture of the wreck, as loved ones wait for more information from investigators.

The group was headed to Halloween Horror Nights before the wreck

Before the crash, the siblings and others in the vehicle were on their way to Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights, Clarke-Milton said. What should have been a night out turned into a deadly incident on one of Florida’s busiest roads.

The trip adds another layer to the story, underscoring how quickly plans can change in a serious highway crash. The destination itself is well known to many Central Florida residents and visitors, but the journey ended before the group could arrive.

Details about the passengers’ relationship to one another and the purpose of the trip have helped explain why the family has drawn so much sympathy. The crash did not involve a public event at the destination, but rather a fatal collision that stopped the outing before it began.

NTSB opens an investigation as state officials prepare a crash report

The National Transportation Safety Board has confirmed it will open an investigation into the incident. That review is expected to help determine how the crash happened and whether there are safety lessons to be learned from the deadly sequence on the turnpike.

The Florida Highway Patrol said it expects to release its crash report within 10 days. That document will likely provide the most detailed official account yet of the crash, including the vehicles involved and the timeline leading up to the fire.

For now, the investigation remains active. With six people dead and a family left grieving, state and federal officials are now focused on reconstructing the moments before the collision and establishing what caused the vehicles to leave the road.

What remains unknown after the deadly weekend collision

Officials have not publicly said what led to the initial impact, and they have not released findings on speed, road conditions or any possible mechanical issues. Those questions will likely be central to the coming investigation by the NTSB and state authorities.

What is already clear is the scale of the tragedy: six people died, including three siblings from the same family. The crash has left behind a painful set of unanswered questions for relatives and investigators alike.

As more information is released, the crash report and federal review should provide a fuller picture of what happened on the Florida Turnpike. For the family, though, the loss is already permanent and immediate, with three children gone in a single night.