Editor’s Note: This story has been updated with additional information about crash victim Bryan Franco, including information about funeral services.
The Hellertown community is mourning the loss of a young man who authorities have identified as one of three people killed in a crash on Rt. 33 in Monroe County that involved multiple vehicles.
Bryan Franco, 25, was one of two people who died at the crash scene in Hamilton Township near the Saylorsburg exit, according to published media reports.
Authorities who are investigating it–including Pennsylvania State Police–say the wreck happened shortly after 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, when a southbound tractor-trailer crossed over the median strip and entered the northbound lanes.
According to reporting by WFMZ-TV Channel 69 News, Franco was behind the wheel of one of the vehicles that were struck when that happened.
The news station cited the Monroe County Coroner’s office in reporting that the other two people killed in the crash were 40-year-old Samantha Crich of Wilkes-Barre and a 14-year-old girl from Wilkes-Barre who was a passenger in Crich’s vehicle, whose name the coroner’s office is not releasing.
Lehigh Valley Live reported that four vehicles were struck when the tractor-trailer crossed over the median, including Franco’s and Crich’s cars, which ended up under the truck.
In another story, the news site reported that Franco was a standout soccer player at both Reading High School and Penn State Berks County, who is being remembered as a leader and friend by former teammates and coaches.
A viewing for Franco will be held Sunday from 11 a.m. to noon at Cramp-Hummel Funeral Home, 934 Centre Ave., Reading, according to a Facebook event page.
Rt. 33 was closed for hours on Wednesday because of the accident, which occurred along a hilly stretch of the highway that includes several sharp curves.
The area in which the accident occurred is about 30 minutes north of Hellertown, just over the Northampton County line.
As of late Thursday authorities had yet to release the name of the tractor-trailer’s driver.
The accident remains under investigation.
Authorities say a crossover accident that claimed three lives Wednesday occurred on Rt. 33 near the Saylorsburg exit in Hamilton Township, Monroe County (pictured above). Police say the accident happened when a southbound tractor-trailer crossed the median and struck four vehicles. One of the victims has been identified as 25-year-old Bryan Franco of Hellertown. (Credit: Google Maps)
