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Fiery crash on US 95 northwest of Las Vegas kills 5

Updated May 21, 2018 - 2:26 am

AMARGOSA VALLEY — Five people were killed and one person, a woman, was injured Sunday afternoon in a three-vehicle crash about 85 miles northwest of Las Vegas, according to the Nevada Highway Patrol.

The injured woman was flown by helicopter to University Medical Center and is expected to survive, Highway Patrol spokesman Travis Smaka said.

At 4:23 p.m., police received a report of a crash on U.S. Highway 95 near Amargosa Valley in Nye County, Smaka said. The highway was closed for hours between state routes 160 and 373 as troopers investigated the accident but all lanes were reopened by early Monday.

A northbound car was attempting to pass a pickup on U.S. 95, Smaka said. When it moved into the southbound lane to pass, it collided head-on with a car, then hit the side of the truck. The truck flipped over, and the man driving died at the scene. The woman in the truck was hospitalized.

The northbound car burst into flames, killing both people inside. The southbound car also had two people inside who died at the scene.

The stretch of highway where the crash happened is a legal passing zone, Smaka said.

Contact Blake Apgar at bapgar@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5298. Follow @blakeapgar on Twitter.

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