5 people killed, 1 seriously hurt in Newton County head-on collision

NEWTON COUNTY, Ga. - Five people were killed Saturday afternoon in Newton County after the van they were in crashed into a truck.

A sixth person, the driver of the truck, is in critical condition at Grady Memorial Hospital, according to the Newton County Sheriff's Office.

The wreck was on State Route 142 in Covington, just past Adams Circle.

Greg Barlow, who lives just feet from the scene, said he heard the crash, and then rushed out to help.

"There wasn’t an inch of that van that wasn’t on fire," Barlow said. "The thud I heard was like there was no brakes. It wasn’t a screech, it was a direct hit."

Photos Barlow exclusively shared with FOX 5 show the van engulfed and the truck’s front end obliterated.

He said before he saw the extent of the flames he grabbed a kitchen fire extinguisher.

"A guy came up here and told me he needed a fire extinguisher," Barlow said. "So I ran back inside and got the house fire extinguisher, a little small one."

When he got back out there, he realized it was already too late to save those five people.

"Ran out there, and man, the van was engulfed in flames," Barlow said. "Too big for that little fire extinguisher."

Investigators said their preliminary investigation found that the truck left its lane, causing the collision.

Deputies declined to say if the driver of that truck could face criminal charges.