3 Southern Co. workers killed in crash

The crash killed the driver and two passengers, DeKalb County Police said.

The driver was Robert Harold Clinton Jr., 60. The passengers were Ollie Benny Stephens Jr., 49, and Cindy Fitzgerald, 54. All three lived in Lilburn.

Officials from Southern Co. and Georgia Power visited with the families Tuesday night.

"We assured the families that the co-workers of their loved ones stand behind them and that we are here to offer assistance in this difficult time," said Mike Garrett, Georgia Power President and CEO.

The injured passengers were identified by police as Keith Reese, 51, of Lawrenceville; Sandra Bonner, 52, of Lilburn, Wanna Philpot, 66, of Stone Mountain; Courtney Hill, 25, of Lilburn; Gary Davis, 51, of Stone Mountain; and Chris Ellis, 56, of Lawrenceville.

Davis has been released from Atlanta Medical Center. Ellis was in good condition.

Bonner was in good condition, and Philpot and Hill in fair condition, at Grady Memorial Hospital.

The driver of the other vehicle, a Dodge Stratus, was James Miles, 55, of Loganville, DeKalb police said. He was not hurt.

Police have not filed charges at this time.

The crash shut down the eastbound lanes of the Stone Mountain Freeway for about three hours Tuesday afternoon, officials said.

Emergency crews had to cut the roof off the top of the van, which was turned on its side, to reach the nine people inside.

The wreck happened just after 4:30 during afternoon traffic between Stone Mountain Industrial and Memorial Drive.

Witnesses told investigators that the Dodge Stratus clipped the rear of the van as the sedan driver attempted to make a lane change, DeKalb police said. The movement caused the van to lose control and overturn, police said. Witnesses also saw the Stratus driver "changing lanes in and out of traffic prior to the accident," the police report states.

Police continue to investigate and said it will likely take days before their work is complete. If they file charges, they will do so then.

Motorists on the highway, also known as U.S. 78, were diverted onto side streets such as Lawrenceville Highway and Ponce de Leon Avenue, which were also clogged for hours following the crash.

The van was owned by VPSI, Inc., a Michigan-based company that owns and leases commuter vans in cities across the country. Company spokesman Jim Cain said VPSI vans are typically driven by employees of the local companies providing the van service.

VPSI released the following statement concerning the crash:

"Like everyone, we are shocked and saddened by what happened today.

"Our thoughts and prayers go out to all of the families who have been touched by this tragedy.

"There's a lot that's unknown at this time. As the authorities investigate, we'll do what we can to help them."

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in May again warned anyone traveling in a 15-passenger van to wear a seatbelt -- as those vans have a "much higher" risk of rolling over than other vehicles. The risk of rolling over increases "dramatically" if the number of people in the van goes from less than five to more than 10, a May research report from NHTSA said.

Using accident data from the Federal Transit Administration, however, the Association for Commuter Transportation said commuter vanpooling "is the safest mode of public transportation."

"To our knowledge, this accident is only the third vehicular accident involving a commuter vanpool that has resulted in fatalities since the inception of commuter vanpooling in the mid 1970s," said a spokesman for ACT, a Washington-based group that supports different forms of commuter transportation.

The Georgia Regional Transportation Association canceled its 50 state-run commuter vanpools in May, saying it planned to turn the idea over to private vanpool companies, such as VPSI and Enterprise Rent-a-Car. VPSI has more than 300 vanpools in operation in metro Atlanta, the company's Website said.

Staff writers Mike Morris and Larry Hartstein contributed to this article.