Five cyclists killed, four injured in Michigan car crash

US car crash

June 7 (Reuters) - Five cyclists were killed and at four injured on Monday evening after a pickup truck crashed into a cycling group along a road in southwest Michigan, police said.

The cyclists were struck on a rural road at about 6:30 p.m. local time north of Kalamazoo, Michigan, by a pickup truck driven by a unidentified 50-year-old male who was taken into custody, said Kalamazoo County Prosecuting Attorney during a news conference.

Five bike riders were pronounced dead at the scene while four riders were taken to hospital. The identification of the deceased and injured will not be made public until families are notified, Getting said.

Local ABC affiliate WZZM reported one rider was in critical condition and another was in fair condition. The condition of the other two injured riders was unclear, the news station said.

Several local law enforcement agencies received calls about how the vehicle was being driven about 30 minutes before the collision, according to Getting.

"The police were actively looking for the vehicle based on the information that was called into them," he said.

Kalamazoo County Undersheriff Paul Matyas told local broadcaster WOOD, an NBC affiliate, that the driver fled on foot after the collision but was later taken into custody.

Getting said the driver was taken into custody after he was found a short distance away from the collusion.

It is unclear where the bike ride originated from and the relationship of the riders. Getting would not elaborate on the specifics regarding the bike ride and riders.

An earlier report said children were involved, but Getting said that all cyclists injured and killed were adults. (Reporting by Curtis Skinner in San Francisco and Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Peter Cooney and Michael Perry)

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