Pope Francis learned Tuesday that three of his relatives died in a car crash in his home country of Argentina that left his nephew in critical condition.
According to USA Today, the Pope's nephew, Emanuel Bergoglio, 38, was traveling on a provincial highway with his wife and two children when the small car slammed into the back of a truck carrying corn.
The crash killed the woman, 35, and children, ages 8 months and 2 years, just after midnight near Cordoba. Bergoglio, the son of the pope's late brother, Alberto Bergoglio, was hospitalized.
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"The pope has been informed and is deeply grieved by the tragic news. He asks all those who share his pain to join with him in prayer," said a statement on the website of Radio Vaticana,
Reuters reported.
Raul Pombo, the driver of the truck, said he felt both the impact of the crash and that the car had been wedged under his vehicle.
"I began stopping passing cars to ask for their fire extinguishers because the car was on fire," Pombo said.
Jorge Rainieri, the region's highway patrol chief, said the impact was "powerful."
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