Car wash employee killed in chain-reaction crash, deputies say

MANASSAS, Va. - A Virginia car wash employee has died after she was struck and killed during a chain-reaction crash at a Manassas car wash, officials say.

Prince William County Sheriff's Office says officers responded just before 9 a.m. Saturday, for a crash with a pedestrian at Soaps and Suds Carwash at 9725 Liberia Ave.

According to the Sheriff's deputies, a Jeep Grand Cherokee had finished being washed as a 19-year-old male employee was attempting to move it from the back entrance of the car wash. However, they say as the Jeep was moving forward, it collided with a Dodge Ram, which then struck a Scion XD.

According to investigators, a car then struck a female employee, 38-year-old Paula Margarita Rogel from Manassas, who was in the parking lot of the business.

Rogel was transported to an area hospital, but deputies say she died later from her injuries.

Investigators also say a female customer, a 56-year-old woman from Manassas, had minor injuries while moving to avoid the collision.

The owner of the Jeep remained on scene and was uninvolved in the incident, deputies say.

Prince William County Sheriff's Office says the cause of the collision is under investigation.