Dr. Ben Carson has temporarily suspended his presidential campaign after one of his staffers, 25-year old Braden Joplin, was killed in a car accident that injured three others on Tuesday.
The 15-passenger van was traveling to set up for a campaign event. It hit a patch of ice, flipped on its side, and then was struck by another vehicle. The three other passengers in the van were treated and released from the hospital in Omaha, Nebraska. Joplin died at 4:30 P.M. local time.
CNN reports:
Iowa State Police Sgt. Nathan Ludwig told CNN that the accident happened on I-80 near Atlantic around 9:45 a.m. CT when the driver lost control of the van after attempting to change lanes. The van traveled through the median and was broadsided by a Chevrolet Avalanche pickup truck.
The campaign said three of the passengers, including the campaign staffer driving, were examined and released from Cass County Memorial Hospital in Atlantic, Iowa.
Earlier on Tuesday, Carson said he had spoken with a neurosurgeon who was attending to Joplin. Carson also said he had spoken with Joplin's family.
Carson's Iowa state director, Ryan Rhodes, asked for prayers in a Facebook post.
"Today is one of those days where it's about more than politics please pray for Braden a dedicated volunteer who put his heart and soul into this effort. Somehow the words Trust in God mean more now than can be expressed," he wrote.
Carson is traveling to Omaha to be with Joplin's family.
Incredibly sad news: @RealBenCarson campaign confirms its volunteer Braden Joplin, 25, died from injuries suffered in accident today. RIP
— Major Garrett (@MajorCBS) January 20, 2016
NBC reported that the Carson campaign has paid for the volunteer's family to travel to Omaha.