7 children, 2 adults injured in head-on collision between day care van and semi-truck

Seven children and two adults are being treated after a head-on collision Wednesday afternoon in West Des Moines.

The driver of a day care van transporting 10 children was distracted, drifted into oncoming traffic and hit a semi-truck heading north on South 88th Street between Cody Drive and EP True Parkway, according to West Des Moines police spokesperson Sgt. Adam Porath. It happened around 2 p.m.

Two adults and seven children were transported to nearby hospitals with apparently non-life threatening injuries. Porath did not say what distracted the driver but told KCCI it was not a cell phone.

Eleven officers were dispatched to the scene to manage traffic, provide first aid and investigate the crash. There also was a diesel spill from the semi-truck, which was addressed by Des Moines Hazmat, Dallas County Emergency Management and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

Names and ages of the victims, as well as the day care the van was associated with had not been released as of noon Thursday.

Ryan Magalhães is a reporter for the Register. Reach them at rmagalhaes@dmreg.com.