Family of 5 Killed in Head-On Collision By Suspected Drunken Driver Going Wrong Way on Highway

A family of five from Michigan has been killed after its SUV was hit head-on by a suspected drunken driver going the wrong way down Interstate 75 in Kentucky.

Authorities confirmed that Issam Abbas, 42, Dr. Rima Abbas, 38, and their three children: Ali, 14, Isabella, 13, and Giselle, 7, were killed after their vehicle was stuck by a pick-up truck going the wrong way along the northbound lane near the 107-mile marker on I-75 around 2:30 a.m. on January 6, causing the SUV to catch fire, the Lexington Police Department said in a statement.

The driver of the pick-up truck, identified by the Fayette County coroner as 41-year-old Joey Lee Bailey from Georgetown, Kentucky, was also killed in the crash. Bailey was believed to be driving under the influence at the time, reported the Detroit Free Press.

The family, who lived in Northville, Michigan, were returning home from a vacation in Florida at the time of the crash, the Fayette County coroner's office said.

Rana Abbas Taylor, Issam Abbas's sister, told the Detroit Free Press the family "remain in shock and we are beyond devastated."

Fayez Faraj, a close family friend, added: "There is no way the family and our community can fathom this loss.

"A beautiful family was senselessly taken away from us. The Abbas family was kind, loving, outgoing and generous. They raised three beautiful children who shared their parents love of life."

Elsewhere, the City of Dearborn Instagram account paid tribute to family alongside a photo of all five of its members.

"Please keep them, their families, and friends in your thoughts and prayers," the caption read.

Kenneth DeGraaf, who witnessed the fiery crash, told WLEX-TV the pick-up truck nearly hit him before it collided with the family's SUV.

"I thought I was seeing something, honestly," DeGraaf said. "He was in the center lane. I was in the center lane. I had to merge out of the way at the last second to get to the right lane. I mean, he was flying. Absolutely flying."

The Lexington Police Department is now asking for any witnesses who saw the white pick-up prior to the crash to come forward with any information they may have.

Anyone with information related to this investigation is asked to contact the Collision Reconstruction Unit at 859-258-3663.

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