4 people killed, 8 injured when shuttle van overturns on Palisades Parkway

A drive home after a long night's work turned to horror when a passenger van transporting 12 people overturned Friday on the Palisades Parkway. 

Four people died at the scene and eight were take to area hospitals after it happened at around 1:45 a.m.

The vehicle's roof ripped off during the rescue efforts. Several people were trapped and the jaws of life were used to free them, CBS2's Astrid Martinez reported. 

At least one person was airlifted. 

One victim was identified by family. 

"We were told to call the medical examiner ... two of my other cousins went over there and they confirmed that she's there," said Natalie Paulino, a victim's relative. 

Paulino's two aunts, both sisters, were in the crash. One is in stable condition at Hackensack Medical Center. The other, who immigrated from Dominican Republic four months ago, lost her life. 

"She was a beautiful person. She came over here to have a better life. She was a very joyful person," Paulino said. 

Parkway police said the van shuttled workers back and forth from their homes to a party goods supply factory in upstate New York. Most victims live in Upper Manhattan, where the van was heading. 

Family members said no one from the New York-based employment agency told them about the accident, leaving loved ones to frantically rush to the scene near Englewood Cliffs to learn details. 

"This bus always has a problem. They're supposed to get home at 11. Sometimes they get home at four in the morning because the bus runs out of gas or it gets lost or something. It's always something with the bus," said Paulino. 

Relatives went to the temp agency On Target in Inwood to demand answers, but got nothing. Paulino wasn't the only one left in limbo. We also stopped by and were not given information. 

The victims taken to area hospitals had injuries ranging from severe head trauma to minor scrapes. 

The cause of the accident is under investigation. 

Five of the victims were rushed to Hackensack University Medical Center, where their families and friends are waiting for answers. They've been unable to contact the victims, knowing their cellphones may have been lost in the crash. 

As CBS2's John Dias reported, most of the roof was ripped off the van, leaving debris scattered around the scene. Many of the victims were trapped and had to be extricated from the wreckage. At least one person was airlifted to a hospital.

Loved ones frantically rushed to the scene in Englewood Cliffs to learn the details.

One man told Dias in Spanish one of the victims is like a sister to him. She has four children in the Dominican Republic, and police still won't tell him if she's one of the people who died, leaving her kids in limbo. 

They aren't the only ones. Another family said their two aunts, who are sisters, were both in the crash and got separated after. 

"It's a rollercoaster, because it's two of them. You have one that's OK, and you don't know about the other one," said one woman. 

Most of the victims live in Upper Manhattan, which is where the van was headed when it crashed. Some families said no one from the company informed them about the accident. 

"They usually get home at like 20-ish. Then when it was 5 and we saw that they weren't home, one of our aunts was just worried," the woman added. 

So they went to the employment agency, On Target, located in Inwood, to demand answers, but got nothing. When Dias called, no one picked up. 

"We don't know what to say, we don't know what to do. We're not getting any answers," the woman said. "She raised all of us. She's like a second mother to us."

The cause of the crash remains under investigation, but many family members told Dias there is speculation the driver may have suffered a heart attack. 

Police released new details Friday morning, saying a cargo van rolled over the center median with several people inside. 

A dozen people were on board the van, and several had to be rescued from the wreckage. 

Police said four people were pronounced dead at the scene, and eight others were hospitalized. 

Their injuries ranged from severe head trauma to minor physical pain. 

Police said the van serves as a shuttle for factory workers in Upstate New York. 

As CBS2's John Dias reported Friday morning, it was an emotional scene in Englewood Cliffs. 

Video captured people upset standing by the wreckage of the crash. 

It happened around 1:45 a.m. just north of exit 1 in the southbound lanes. 

Several injuries were reported, with at least one person transported to the hospital in a helicopter. 

Southbound lanes remain closed, which could make for a messy commute. 

CBS2's Traffic Reporter Guy Stanier says drivers in Bergen County should use Route 9W instead.