Chinese exchange student dies in high-impact US car crash that split vehicle in two

A 21-year-old Chinese exchange student was killed in the United States in a car crash that split the vehicle in two, scattering parts across a residential street in Pennsylvania, local media reported.

Pennsylvania State University exchange student Tang Kaijing was driving a white Chevrolet Corvette when it hit a tree on a residential street in the campus town of State College, Pennsylvania, at about 4.22am on Saturday.

The car had completely split in two due to the force of the impact, according to a Facebook post from the Alpha Fire Company, which attended the scene.

Tang died at the scene from a head injury, Centre County coroner Scott Sayers said, according to Centre Daily Times. Tang was alone in the vehicle.

Tang had lost control of the vehicle before hitting the tree and speed might have been a factor, according to police, and had been returning from a friend’s party, according to China Daily on Monday.

The surrounding streets were closed off for four hours as police and emergency workers cleared the crash site, the fire department said.

Tang was an undergraduate studying computer science at the university, which is more than three hours’ drive from New York and Washington.

“We share our deepest condolences with the family and friends of Kaijing Tang and with all whose lives he touched,” the university said in a statement. A police investigation into the crash is under way.

Another Chinese student, Zhao Zishan, 19, died on holiday in June after being hit by a car while crossing a street in Wilmington, North Carolina. Zhao was a student at Washington University in St Louis. His death was confirmed by the Chinese consulate general in Chicago.