( CNN ) -- At the intersection of the two country roads , charred debris lies strewn haphazardly . The earth around it is scorched . It is here , in this corner of Dumas , Texas , that a sport utility vehicle and a gas tanker collided Sunday afternoon . The tanker 's flammable cargo sent both vehicles up in flames , seriously injuring the truck driver and killing all five passengers in the Chevrolet SUV . All of those who died were teenagers . The crash , coupled with another one in Warren , Ohio , the same day , highlight that motor vehicle wrecks continue to be the No . 1 killer of youths in the United States . Such accidents took the lives of about a quarter of the 15- to 24-year-olds who died in 2010 , according to the most recent numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention . They outpaced the other top culprits : firearm wounds , homicides , suicides and accidental poisonings . But the wrecks mask a broader improvement : Overall traffic fatalities have been dropping in a `` historic downward trend , '' according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration . In 2005 , it tallied 43,510 traffic deaths ; in 2011 , there were 32,367 , the lowest level since 1949 . In 2009 , motor vehicle crashes were the 11th-leading cause of death . That marked the first time since 1981 , when data were first available , that motor vehicle crashes were not among the nation 's top 10 causes of death . 6 teens killed , 2 injured when overcrowded SUV flips into pond . A fatal mistake . It was n't clear where the teens were headed in the SUV when , authorities say , the driver , 16-year-old Jacob Paul Stipe , failed to stop at a stop sign . It was a fateful mistake . As the SUV entered the intersection , a truck smashed into its passenger side , CNN affiliate KFDA reported , quoting authorities . Paul died at the scene . So did his four passengers : October Dawn Roys , 17 ; Elizabeth Kay Roys , 15 ; Derrek Lee Hager , 17 ; and Christopher Lee Moore , 17 . The truck driver , Ezequel Melecio Garcia , was flown to a hospital burn unit in Lubbock . Best of friends . The teens were friends , said Star Tovar , assistant manager at the local Dairy Queen . `` It was always them together , all five of them always together , '' she told CNN affiliate KVII . Chris had recently moved to the area . Elizabeth and October , who went by the nickname Toby , were sisters . October leaves an infant daughter . Their parents , Robert and Sheryl Roys , wept as they spoke to the affiliate . `` They changed hair color every month , '' Robert Roys said , smiling for a moment . `` It 's going to be hard not having them around because they were there all the time . I love them with all my heart and they 'll always be here , in my heart , '' said Sheryl . Grief in Ohio . Hours earlier and nearly 1,400 miles away , in Warren , Ohio , six teenagers were killed when an SUV struck a guard rail and flipped into a pond . They were among eight teens who had crammed into the Honda Passport , which was later reported stolen . It was built to seat no more than five . None of the dead had been wearing a seat belt , authorities said . The teenagers were speeding down a two-lane northeastern Ohio road , authorities say . Alexis Cayson , 19 , was behind the wheel , the highway patrol said . Those who died alongside her were : Andrique Bennett , 14 ; Kirklan M. Behner , 15 ; Daylan Ray , 15 ; Brandon A. Murray , 14 ; and Ramone M. White , 15 . All were from Warren . The two survivors escaped by breaking the rear window in the submerged vehicle , Ohio State Highway Patrol Lt. Brian Holt said . They ran a quarter mile to a nearby home and called 911 , he said . Holt said weather was not a factor in the wreck -- the deadliest in his county 's history and the worst in Ohio in at least three years . 'It 's numbing ' Monday night , mourners held a vigil near the guard rail and alongside a makeshift memorial of Teddy bears and a cross . They released helium-filled balloons into the air to commemorate the dead . `` It 's numbing . It 's confusing . It 's hurtful , '' said Charlene Blackwell , whose nephew Ramone White was among the dead . Grief counselors visited area schools Monday to help students and staff with the emotional aftermath .
The crash killed everyone in the SUV . The driver of the gasoline tanker was seriously injured and flown to a hospital burn unit . The 16-year-old driver ran a stop sign , authorities say . Traffic accidents are the No . 1 killer of youths in the United States .