Two Lafayette residents died after a three-vehicle crash in St. Landry Parish.
Janie Hobbs, 67, and Shannon Thibodeaux, 34, were killed in a crash around 2 a.m. Wednesday after a pickup truck struck the rear end of their vehicle as it was in the process of being towed, a Louisiana State Police news release said.
According to State Police, Bryan Dugan, 64, of Oklahoma, was traveling south on Interstate 49 in his Ford F-150 when he, for unknown reasons, struck the rear end of a Nissan Titan that was pulled over on the right side of the roadway with a flat tire.
The release said Thibodeaux, the tow truck operator, and Hobbs, the Nissan's passenger, were outside their vehicles when Dugan's truck struck them.
Dugan, the Nissan's driver, and two additional passengers suffered moderate to severe injuries, the release said. The four were transported to a local hospital.
Charges against Dugan are pending and State Police say the crash remains under investigation.
Troop I has investigated 12 fatal crashes resulting in 13 deaths in 2024.