A young brother and sister died and more than a dozen people were injured, several seriously, when a vehicle driven by a suspected drunken driver crashed into a birthday party Saturday at a boat club, a Michigan sheriff said.
Monroe County Sheriff Troy Goodnough said an 8-year-old girl and her 5-year-old brother died when a 66-year-old woman crashed 25 feet into the building at about 3 p.m. at the Swan Creek Boat Club in Berlin Township, about 30 miles south of Detroit.
“First aid was provided to approximately about 15 victims, which included adults and young children,” Goodnough said in a news conference Saturday night.
The two young siblings were pronounced dead at the scene, Goodnough said. Nine other people — six adults and three children —were transported by helicopter or ambulance to area hospitals with serious or life-threatening injuries, he added.
Several more people were taken to area hospitals by private vehicle.
Goodnough said the crash scene “was described by the first responders as extremely chaotic with high levels of emotions of those directly involved and those who witnessed this horrific incident.”
It’s unclear how many people were in the building at the time of the crash, Goodnough disclosed.
The sheriff did not identify the woman driving the vehicle, but said she was taken into custody suspected of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated causing death.
“Additional criminal charges will likely be brought against the driver as the investigation proceeds,” Goodnough said.
He said she was cooperating with authorities.
