State police investigate the scene of a fatal accident on Saturday in Woodbury, New York. A passenger van carrying members of a church flipped over on the New York State Thruway, killing at least six people and injuring eight others, authorities said.- AP

Six people believed to be Jamaicans perished in a spectacular motor-vehicle accident along a New York State highway in the United States on Saturday.

The mostly elderly victims, who are from a Bronx-based church group, were en route to a banquet in upstate NewYork and died instantly when the van in which they were travelling blew out a rear tyre and flipped over several times.

Police reports indicate that they were among nine people thrown from the vehicle while it flipped over.

New York State troopers released the names of the victims as Bishop Simon White, 55, the pastor of the church; his wife, Zelda White, 52; his sister, Elaine Reid, 65; associate pastor, Titus McGhie, 66; Evelyn Ferguson, 65; and Avril Murray, 62.

The remaining eight passengers, who suffered serious injuries, were airlifted to nearby hospitals.

They have been identified as Veronica Francis, 54; Mariam Edwards, 41; Maisy Gillespie, 68; Nada Richards, 36; Judith Richards, 45; Charlene Mandry, 45; Joan Davis, 51; and Bernard Lattibuediere, 52, the driver of the van.

The official report from New York State troopers is that the van, which is registered to Joy Fellowship ChristianMinistries, located on East Gunhill Road in The Bronx, was travelling along the New York State Thruway when it experienced a rear-driver-side tyre failure.

This caused Lattibuediere to lose control of the vehicle.

"Lattibuediere attempted to regain control as the vehicle left the roadway off the western shoulder, subsequently overturning multiple times coming to an uncontrolled rest in the g****y median in the middle of the road," the report said.

A friend of one of the victims told The Gleaner that the church, Joy Fellowship Christian Ministries, was a sea of grief yesterday as parishioners and well-wishers gathered to console each other.

Jamaica's consul general in New York, Geneive Brown-Metzger, said she did not have all the details about the accident, but expressed shock at the news.

Brown-Metzger said she has not yet made contact with the victims' families and did not know what kind of assistance they would require, but "we will look into how we can help".

Deputy Prime Minister, Dr Ken Baugh, arrived in New York yesterday to attend the 65th session of the United Nations General Assembly. Prime Minister Bruce Golding is scheduled to attend the conference on Tuesday.