Car hood unlatched and hit windshield prior to deadly Loop 303 crash: DPS

2 killed in Loop 303 chain reaction crash

A chain reaction crash on Loop 303 killed two people, DPS said. The incident began when the hood of a westbound minivan broke, flipping up against the windshield, causing it to slow down. The minivan was rear-ended by a second car, which was then rear-ended by a third car; the driver and passenger of the second car died at the scene.

SURPRISE, Ariz. - Two people were killed in a crash on Loop 303 in Surprise on Tuesday, the Arizona Department of Public Safety said.

What we know:

The Dec. 9 three-car crash happened in the northbound lanes near Clearview Boulevard just before 1 p.m.

On Dec. 10, DPS identified the two victims as 82-year-old Richard W. Goode and 85-year-old Anna S. Maas.

"They were a married couple from Wittman," read a brief e-mail we received from DPS officials.

Dig deeper:

Per investigators, the crash happened when a Toyota Sienna slowed in the roadway because the vehicle's hood became unlatched, impacting its windshield.

"Investigators believe a Nissan SUV rear ended the vehicle with the hood up in the #2 lane," DPS officials wrote. "At that point, a Toyota SUV struck the rear of the Nissan SUV."

Officials said Goode and Maas were inside the Nissan SUV, and both were declared dead on scene.

"The drivers of the two other vehicles were transported to local hospitals for treatment of non-life threatening injuries," DPS officials wrote.