An Arlington couple was killed and two others were critically injured when they were hit by a passing car after a multi-vehicle crash north of Hillsboro on Saturday.
According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, at about 8:30 p.m., a farm tractor towing farm equipment was headed northbound on Texas 171 about two miles north of Hillsboro near County Road 4223 when it was hit by a northbound Ford Fiesta that struck the farm equipment after passing a pickup truck.
The collision caused the farm equipment to detach, which was then struck by two southbound vehicles, a Chevrolet Traverse and a Ford F-150.
The DPS said the driver and passenger of the F-150 and a passenger from the Traverse exited their vehicles and were standing in the roadway when they were hit by another vehicle.
The occupants of the pickup, identified as 39-year-old Zachary Barton and his wife, 39-year-old Katherine Barton, were both killed. The 12-year-old occupant of the Traverse was critically injured. The driver of the Fiesta that the DPS said originally hit the farm equipment was also critically injured in the crash.
No other injuries were reported.
The DPS did not say whether the driver who struck the couple and the child would face any charges. The DPS added that although the investigation into the crash is ongoing, investigators suspect alcohol may have been a contributing factor in the initial crash.