Toddler killed, woman injured after crash causes explosion at Kansas gas station

DERBY, Kan. (KSNW) — A 3-year-old girl is dead and a woman seriously injured after a fiery car crash at a gas station in Derby, Kansas.

According to the City of Derby Police Chief Robert Lee, a vehicle left the roadway and entered the parking lot of a QuikTrip at around 5:30 p.m. Monday night.

The car, driven by an unidentified man, collided with another vehicle that was being filled with gas.

“When the collision occurred between that vehicle that left Meadowlark and the vehicle pumping gas, the gas pumped was knocked over,” Lee told local media. “There was a significant explosion.”

A photo shared by the City of Derby shows flames and black smoke rising from behind the gas station’s sign.

A 3-year-old girl who was in the car parked at the gas pump died in the crash, according to authorities. The driver of that car, an unidentified woman who was pumping gas, was severely injured and taken to a local hospital.

Additional details about her condition and her relationship with the young girl were not immediately available.

Lee said authorities are speaking with the driver of the vehicle that left the roadway, as well as witnesses. He said he does not know if drugs, alcohol, or a medical issue were factors in the crash.

“We have a team from Sedgwick County coming that will help us with reconstruction of the event, so it’s going to be hours that will be out here tonight and probably days and weeks before we reach a conclusion,” Lee said.

An investigation is ongoing.