Five people, including four fraternity brothers, died in a fiery, head-on collision on a southwest Florida highway early Sunday morning, according to Florida Highway Patrol officials.
The driver of an SUV was heading south in the northbound lanes of Interstate 275 in Tampa around 2 a.m. Sunday when the driver collided head-on with a Hyundai Sonata. Authorities say the SUV burst into flames and the driver died at the scene. FHP officials were still trying to identify the male victim late Sunday because of extensive injuries from the fire.
Sergeant Steve Gaskins said all four victims in the second car also died at the scene. They were members of the University of South Florida's fraternity Sigma Beta Rho. Authorities identified the victims as: Jobin Joy Kuriakose, 21, Ankeet Harshad Patel, 22, Imtiyaz Ilias, 20 and Dammie Yesudhas, 21.
Authorities said they are investigating whether drugs or alcohol played a role in the crash.
The highway was closed for several hours and re-opened around 7 a.m.
