A tragic incident on a Georgia highway has led to the arrest of a semitrailer driver on multiple homicide charges, authorities reported Tuesday. The collision resulted in the deaths of three adults and five children.

Kane Aaron Hammock, aged 33, faces eight charges of second-degree vehicular homicide and an additional charge of second-degree feticide by a vehicle, according to Franka Young, a spokesperson for the Georgia Department of Public Safety. In an email on Tuesday afternoon, Young also noted that Hammock has been cited for following too closely, lacking vehicle registration, and failing to exercise due care while driving.

The fatal crash occurred Monday afternoon on Interstate 85 in Jackson County, roughly 62 miles northeast of Atlanta. The collision set a Dodge van ablaze after it was hit by the semitrailer, as detailed by law enforcement officials.

The identities of the eight victims in the van remain undisclosed. Young mentioned that one of the deceased might have been pregnant, but confirmation is pending an autopsy.

Hammock was taken into custody by the Georgia State Patrol and is currently held at the Jackson County Jail. Jail records do not list an attorney for Hammock, and attempts to reach the local public defender’s office for comment late Tuesday have not yet received a response.

Four other vehicles also crashed in what officials described as a “chain reaction” after the initial collision.

A van being used by Furkids Animal Rescue and Shelters was one of the other vehicles involved in the crash. That van’s driver was left with bruises and cuts to his head, according to CEO Samantha Shelton.

“In the chaos of the wreckage, cages were crushed, and cats began to flee,” the Cumming, Georgia-based animal rescue group wrote on its Facebook page.

The group was taking 37 cats to a shelter in Vermont, and some of the cats fled after the crash, Shelton said. Two were still missing as of Tuesday, and one cat was hospitalized in critical care, Shelton said.

The crash is being investigated by the Georgia State Patrol’s Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team, Young said. The National Transportation Safety Board is also investigating the crash.

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Golden reported from Seattle.