Eight people were killed in a head-on crash near Florence on Wednesday night.

According to the Arizona Department of Public Safety, two vehicles were involved in the two-car crash around 10 p.m. Wednesday along SR-79, south of Florence.

A Chevy Suburban with nine people inside was reportedly headed northbound when it was struck by a Buick passenger car headed southbound. Officials don't yet know what caused the Buick to cross the center line.

The driver, front passenger, and four other passengers in the Suburban were killed. Three other passengers have serious to life-threatening injuries and are hospitalized.

The driver and front passenger of the Buick were also killed in the crash.

The individuals who died in the Buick have been identified as 41-year-old Angel Meza from Eloy and 33-year-old Nicole Vidal from Eloy.

The driver of the Suburban has been identified as 45-year-old Rodney Palimo from Sells. The passenger has been identified as 43-year-old Kathleen Palimo from Sells. Both died from their injuries.

The driver and front-seat passenger of the Suburban were U.S. citizens, however, the other seven occupants are Guatemalan nationals. The Department of Homeland Security is working to identify and notify next-of-kin.

"You know, at first glance, it appears that it could be, but that’s not something for us to determine. We’re not the agency to determine if it was a smuggling attempt. We’re focused on the facts of the actual collision and what happened," said Trooper Kameron Lee, a public information officer with the Arizona Department of Public Safety.

According to the Associated Press, court records show Rodney and Kathleen Palimo had been previously convicted of immigrant smuggling charges. Rodney Palimo pleaded guilty in March 2008 to a misdemeanor count of aiding and abetting an alien. Kathleen Palimo in 2004 pleaded guilty to a felony count of transportation of illegal aliens.

Both directions of SR-79 were shut down for several hours after the crash and reopened around 4 a.m. Thursday.

The investigation is ongoing.

Editor's note: The Arizona Department of Public Safety originally reported nine deaths were involved in this crash, but have since updated their count to eight deaths and three individuals injured.</s>PHOENIX (AP) — Nine people, including seven who were in the U.S. illegally, were killed in a head-on collision on an Arizona highway, authorities said Thursday.

The crash occurred around 10 p.m. Wednesday when a car struck an SUV carrying nine people on State Route 79 south of Florence and about 60 miles southeast of Phoenix, the Arizona Department of Public Safety said.

The agency has declined to say whether the SUV was being used as part of a smuggling operation or may have been connected to a government immigration facility near Florence.

Investigators don’t know the cause of the crash. The southbound car, a Buick, had crossed the center line and struck the SUV, which was northbound.

Officials say the SUV’s driver and front-seat passenger were U.S. citizens, but seven others in the vehicle were immigrants in the country illegally.

The driver, front-seat passenger and five others in the SUV were killed. Two others were taken to hospitals.

The driver and front-seat passenger in the Buick also were killed.</s>Authorities say nine people, including seven who were in the U.S. illegally, were killed in a head-on collision on an Arizona highway.The Arizona Department of Public Safety says the crash occurred late Wednesday when a vehicle struck an SUV carrying nine people on State Route 79 near Florence, about 60 miles southeast of Phoenix.Investigators don't know the cause of the crash.Officials say the SUV's driver and front-seat passenger were U.S. citizens, but seven others in the vehicle were immigrants in the country illegally.The driver, front-seat passenger and five others in the SUV were killed. Two others in the SUV were taken to hospitals.The driver and front-seat passenger in the other vehicle also were killed.</s>Nine people, including seven illegal immigrants, have been killed in a head-on collision on an Arizona highway, authorities announced Thursday.

The crash occurred around 10pm local time Wednesday when a Buick traveling south crossed over the center line of State Route 79 and struck a northbound Chevy Suburban head-on.

Both passengers in the Buick were killed, along with seven passengers in the Chevy.

Two other passengers were transported to the hospital with serious to life-threatening injuries.

Investigators are still working to determine the cause of the crash.

Officials have said the SUV's driver and front-seat passenger were both US citizens, but that the seven other people in the car were in the country illegally.

The Department of Homeland Security is working to notify next-of-kin.

The Arizona Department of Public Safety declined to say whether the SUV was being used as part of a smuggling operation or may have been connected to a government immigration facility in nearby Florence, more than 120 miles from the Mexico border.

Arizona has been the scene of a number of fatal crashes involving immigrants who were being smuggled, including one near the border nearly a decade ago in which 10 people died after an SUV rolled over on a highway.

Some crashes occurred on remote routes being used by smugglers after the government ramped up personnel and surveillance technology at the border.

Smugglers sometimes lost control of vehicles while fleeing Border Patrol agents.

In Texas, five people were killed in June when an SUV carrying a dozen immigrants flipped while fleeing agents.</s>PHOENIX (AP) — Nine people, including seven who were in the U.S. illegally, were killed in a head-on collision on an Arizona highway, authorities said Thursday.

The crash occurred late Wednesday when a vehicle struck an SUV carrying nine people on State Route 79 near Florence, about 60 miles southeast of Phoenix, the Arizona Department of Public Safety said.

The agency has declined to say whether the SUV was being used as part of a smuggling operation or may have been connected to a government immigration facility near Florence.

Investigators don't know the cause of the crash.

Officials say the SUV's driver and front-seat passenger were U.S. citizens, but seven others in the vehicle were immigrants in the country illegally

The driver, front-seat passenger and five others in the SUV were killed. Two others were taken to hospitals.

The driver and front-seat passenger in the other vehicle also were killed.

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>PHOENIX — Authorities say Arizona residents and immigrants in the U.S. illegally from Guatemala were among the eight people killed in a head-on crash.

The Arizona Department of Public Safety released the names Friday of some of the people who died in the collision involving an SUV about 120 miles north of the Mexico border.

Officials have not said whether the SUV was involved in a smuggling operation.

Deputies say 41-year-old Angel Meza of Eloy was driving a Buick late Wednesday when it went into the opposite lane of traffic and struck an SUV.

Meza and his passenger, 33-year-old Nicole Vidal, were killed.

The SUV driver, 45-year-old Rodney Palimo, and a front seat passenger, 43-year-old Kathleen Palimo, both of Sells, also died.

Seven men from Guatemala were also in the SUV. Four died and three were injured. Their conditions were not immediately known.</s>PHOENIX — The Latest on a fatal crash that left eight dead including four Guatemalans (all times local):

Court records show the driver and passenger of an SUV involved in a deadly head-on crash that left them and four Guatemalan men dead had been previously convicted of immigrant smuggling charges.

Federal court records show 45-year-old driver Rodney Palimo pleaded guilty in March 2008 to a misdemeanor count of aiding and abetting an alien.

He was initially charged with a felony count of transporting an illegal alien.

SUV passenger Kathleen Palimo, 43, in 2004 pleaded guilty to a felony count of transportation of illegal aliens.

They were both killed in the crash Wednesday that also left four Guatemalan men dead and three injured who had been in the SUV.

The driver and passenger in the car they collided with also died.

Authorities say the car veered into the opposite lane of traffic, striking the SUV.

Authorities say Arizona residents and immigrants from Guatemala were among the eight people killed in a head-on crash.

The Arizona Department of Public Safety released the names Friday of the victims from Arizona who died in the highway collision near Florence.

Deputies say 41-year-old Angel Meza, of Eloy, was driving a Buick late Wednesday when it went into the opposite lane of traffic and struck an SUV.

Meza and his passenger, 33-year-old Nicole Vidal, were pronounced dead.

The SUV driver, 45-year-old Rodney Palimo, and a front passenger, 43-year-old Kathleen Palimo, both of Sells, also died.

Seven men from Guatemala were also in the car. Four died. The other three were injured. Their conditions were not immediately known.

Officials have not said whether the SUV was involved in a smuggling operation.</s>PHOENIX (AP) — CORRECTS: Officials say 8 people, including 4 immigrants in U.S. illegally, killed in a head-on crash in Arizona. (Corrects APNewsAlert that said nine people were killed and seven of them were immigrants )</s>PHOENIX -- Eight people, including four immigrants in the U.S. illegally, were killed in a head-on crash on an Arizona highway, authorities said Thursday. The crash occurred late Wednesday in a rural part of the state more than 120 miles north of the Mexico border.

The Arizona Department of Public Safety declined to say whether an SUV involved in the collision was being used as part of a smuggling operation or may have been connected to a government immigration facility in nearby Florence.

However, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency said the immigrants killed were not detainees.

Officials say the SUV's driver and front-seat passenger were U.S. citizens, but seven others in the vehicle were immigrants in the country illegally.

The driver, front-seat passenger and four immigrants in the SUV were killed. Three other immigrants were taken to hospitals.

The driver and front-seat passenger in the other vehicle also were killed.

Investigators don't know the cause of the crash on State Route 79.

Arizona has been the scene of a number of fatal crashes involving immigrants who were being smuggled, including one near the border nearly a decade ago in which 10 people died after an SUV rolled over on a highway.

Some crashes occurred on remote routes being used by smugglers after the government ramped up personnel and surveillance technology at the border.

Smugglers sometimes lost control of vehicles while fleeing Border Patrol agents.

In Texas, five people were killed in June when an SUV carrying a dozen immigrants flipped while fleeing agents.</s>PHOENIX (Reuters) - A sport utility vehicle carrying seven suspected illegal immigrants was hit head-on by another car on an Arizona highway, killing eight people, state police said on Thursday.

Three other people were seriously injured in the collision on Wednesday when a Chevrolet Suburban, containing seven immigrants and two U.S. citizens, was hit by a Buick passenger vehicle near Florence, Arizona, about 125 miles (200 km) from the border, a police spokesman said.

The state Department of Public Safety earlier had reported nine people were killed in the accident.

It was not immediately clear whether the SUV was involved in any smuggling activity, said department spokesman Quentin Mehr. He did not know if the driver of the other vehicle was impaired or if anyone was wearing seat belts.

“This is a very complex investigation and the investigation is still ongoing,” Mehr said.

The driver, front-seat passenger and four of the seven illegal immigrants in the sport utility vehicle were killed, he said. Three other passengers were taken to the hospital, one with life-threatening injuries.

Both occupants of the other vehicle were killed, Mehr said.

The collision, about 60 miles (100 km) southeast of Phoenix, shut down the highway for roughly six hours.
Eight people are killed in a head-on crash near Florence, Arizona, United States, after a car strikes an SUV.