Three Southern University marching band members were killed when a semi-truck crashed into their car as they were changing a flat tire on the side of a Louisiana highway Tuesday night.
The tragedy occurred after the students — Tyan Williams, 19, Dylan Young, 21 and Broderick Moore, 19 — stopped a 1999 Jeep Laredo on the shoulder of northbound I-49 in Natchitoches to fix the flat, according to Louisiana State Police.
While they were working to replace the tire, a 1997 Freightliner drifted onto the shoulder and slammed into the left side of the Jeep, cops said.
The three students, members of Southern University’s renowned Human Jukebox Marching Band, were declared dead at the scene.
The semi-truck driver, identified by police as 62-year-old Clyde Gay of Coushatta, suffered no injuries. Police said that a toxicology report is pending as they continue to investigate.
Williams and Moore were both freshmen at the Baton Rouge school majoring in music, the University said in a statement to the school community. Young was a sophomore majoring in mechanical engineering.
Human Jukebox’s Director of Bands Kedric Taylor said he is “at a loss for words and utterly devastated” to hear of the fatal accident.
Taylor called the three victims “some of the most promising, humble and talented musicians I’ve had the pleasure of instructing.”
“The dedication and work ethic they displayed to the Human Jukebox was inspiring,” Taylor said in a statement.
The college is offering counseling services to students, Dennis J. Shields, President-Chancellor of SU, said in the statement.
“While information is still being gathered during this difficult time, we fully respect the privacy of the families of our beloved students,” Shields wrote. “We will share ways to remember them in the near future.”
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