DENTON – Four Denton teens were killed in a fiery one-vehicle rollover near Denton this morning.
The Great Falls Tribune reported that a Highway Patrol dispatcher told them six people were in the vehicle when it drifted on the shoulder and rolled when the driver overcorrected.
The vehicle caught on fire after ending up overturned in a ditch on Montana Highway 81.
Three of the teens were pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators hadn’t yet determined whether the teens died from injuries received in the rollover or the fire. A fourth teen was pronounced dead after arriving at Central Montana Medical Center in Lewistown.
The names of the teens involved, whose ages ranged between 14 and 17, were withheld by authorities. An official at the Fergus County Coroner’s Office said the names of the victims may be released Sunday.
The survivors were able to get out before the vehicle caught fire. They were both taken to Central Montana Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries.
The town of Denton, with a population of 301, according to the 2000 census, is northwest of Lewistown.
The four fatalities raised this year’s total number of traffic deaths on Montana’s highways to 121.