3 students die in Ripley County crash

RIPLEY COUNTY, Ind. (WISH/AP) - Three students were killed and three were injured Thursday morning in a Ripley County crash.

Police officials say the crash occurred around 10 a.m. at Fairgrounds Road and County Road 850 West.

The three victims are South Ripley High School students, an Indiana State Police release said. They have been identified as 17-year-old Timothy C. Bowman, 18-year-old Jacob Vogel, and 18-year-old Samantha R. Hanson.

• PHOTOS | Ripley County accident scene

Six students were traveling in two pickup trucks that collided when one of the pickups ran a stop sign. Three teens were traveling in each pickup and returning to school after participating in an FFA event at a church.

The injured teens were being treated at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center.

ISP held a news conference at 4:30 p.m. Thursday. More information about the crash and the students names were released.

The fatal crash was the latest in handful of recent tragedies in Versailles, a town of only about 2,000 people. In the last year, an 18-year-old girl died after crashing her car while texting, a 15-year-old girl was killed in an ATV accident last May, and a beloved teacher died in a plane crash in January. Fatal tornadoes also ripped through the town last March.

"These are all very, very tight communities and everyone knows everyone," said Katherine Taul, director of the Ripley County Tourism Bureau. "So even if you weren't directly connected or related to them, it still touches everybody."

"Our community's been hit by so many sad things lately," Taul added.

The Indiana State Department of Agriculture and Indiana FFA released the following statement:

The Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA) and the Indiana FFA Association were very saddened to hear about the events which took place in Versailles, Indiana earlier today.  The loss of any life is tragic and heartbreaking.  That heartbreak is only compounded when the loss of life happens to those who are so young.  ISDA and the entire Association send our condolences, thoughts, and prayers are with the South Ripley FFA Chapter, the local community, and the many friends and family members of all who were involved in this tragic accident.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.