DAVENPORT, Fla. — Polk County deputies are investigating a three-vehicle crash that left a father and his 8-year-old daughter dead.
The sheriff's office responded to the crash just after 6 a.m. Tuesday on U.S. Highway 27, south of U.S. 192 in Davenport.
Deputies said they arrived to find 28-year-old Christopher Roque-Pabon and his 8-year-old daughter Crisyareiliz dead in his white 1995 Toyota Tercel.
After investigating, deputies said Roque-Pabon was driving southbound on
U.S. 27 when he veered to the southeast. His car lost traction and began to spin into the grass median and into the northbound lanes.
That's where the car was hit by a man driving a 2020 Ford F150 carrying four passengers.
The crash caused the truck to rotate and stop in the path of a man driving a 2006 Toyota Corolla in the center northbound lane.
Deputies said the Corolla glanced off the truck and into the east side shoulder where it hit an embankment along the edge of the highway.
According to the sheriff's office, neither Roque-Pabon nor his daughter were wearing seatbelts.
The driver of the F150 was wearing his seatbelt, but his passengers were not. The Corolla driver and his passenger were both wearing seatbelts. The sheriff's office said they were all taken to local hospitals where they are being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
"My heart aches for this family who has lost a father and his little girl. Fatal traffic crashes are devastating," Sheriff Grady Judd said. "In the blink of an eye, a happy and healthy loved one can be instantaneously taken from this world. Please, drive safely and wear your seatbelts."
The investigation is ongoing.