Six members of the same family were killed in a head-on collision on a federal highway in Minas Gerais early Tuesday morning, according to authorities.
The crash occurred around 4:45 a.m. On April 21, 2026, on BR-251 near the town of Salinas, approximately 400 miles north of Belo Horizonte. Police said the family was traveling in a passenger vehicle with São Paulo license plates, heading toward Bahia, when the driver veered into the opposite lane and collided frontally with a tractor-trailer.
The truck, which was en route from Lauro de Freitas in Bahia to Imbituba in Santa Catarina, was struck with such force that all occupants of the car died at the scene. Emergency responders, including firefighters and SAMU medical teams, arrived shortly after but could not save any of the victims.
Among those killed were two children, aged 3 and 10, a 15-year-old teenager, the parents — aged 50 and 40 — and the maternal grandmother, aged 60. Authorities reported that the 3-year-old was seated on the lap of the 15-year-old in the back seat at the time of impact.
The truck driver was not injured and cooperated with investigators. He told police he had no time to avoid the collision. A breathalyzer test administered at the scene showed no alcohol in his system, and he was later taken to the Taiobeiras Civil Police station for further questioning.
Officials have not released the names of the victims pending notification of relatives. The incident is under investigation by the Federal Highway Police.
