Victims of deadly Oregon highway crash were farmworkers, union says

ALBANY, Ore. (AP) — An Oregon union says the victims of one of the state’s deadliest highway crashes were farmworkers traveling in a van at an hour when agricultural laborers typically commute home after toiling in the harvest. Authorities have not yet released the names of the seven who died or the four who were injured in Thursday’s crash on I-5 near Albany. But the PCUN union says all 11 were farmworkers.

The Mexican Consulate in Portland also said that the victims were farmworkers. In a statement posted on social media, the consulate said the seven dead and four injured were of Mexican nationality. The driver of the semitruck that struck the van was arrested Friday on suspicion of manslaughter, DUI and other charges.

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