COLBY — Five people were hospitalized in an accident early Tuesday morning in Thomas County.

According to the Kansas Highway Patrol, a 2009 Mazda passenger car driven by Silvia Hernandea-Esquivel, 50, Thornton, Colo., was westbound on Interstate 70 14 miles east of Colby when it was rear-ended by a 2017 Buick driven by Gopi Karanam, 31, Lewisville, Texas.

Hernandea-Esquivel and four passengers in the Mazda, ranging in age from 17 to 2 years old, were transported to Citizens Medical Center in Colby for treatment.

Karanam was not injured. The KHP reported all involved were wearing safety restraints.