SANFORD, Fla. — Two children have died and their father is in the hospital after they were riding on a dirt bike that collided with a truck in Sanford, the police department said.
At around 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 24, officers responded to a crash near Historic Goldsboro Blvd. and South Mulberry Ave. where they found the two children, ages 2 and 5, and their dad in life-threatening condition, a news release reads.
They were each transported to a local hospital where the two children later died.
Police believe the 34-year-old father was driving the dirt bike with his two children as passengers west along Historic Golsboro Blvd. when a Ford F-150 headed east on the same road attempted to turn left onto Mulberry Ave. and hit the dirt bike.
Criminal charges are pending in regards to the dirt bike. Apparently, police say it was not street-legal, had no headlights and was reported to be traveling at a high rate of speed before the crash. Neither the father nor his children were wearing helmets, according to the police department.
"There is absolutely no reason that this should have occurred this evening. Tragic and completely avoidable doesn’t begin to describe the loss of these two young lives," Sanford police chief Cecil Smith said in a news release. "Those children should never have been on that dirt bike, and that dirt bike should never have been on the road. Those little ones should have been home getting ready to be tucked into bed, not speeding down the road in the dark. It is always the parent’s responsibility to protect the tender lives of their children."
There were no reported injuries from the F-150.
Police are seeking additional information on the crash. If you have any information, you're asked to call Sanford Police Department or Crimeline at 800-423-TIPS.
