Laura Lynch, founding member of The Dixie Chicks, killed in head-on crash in Texas, authorities say

HUDSPETH COUNTY, Texas (KABC) -- Laura Lynch, a founding member of The Dixie Chicks, was killed in a head-on crash in Texas, authorities confirmed Saturday. She was 65.

According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, the crash happened Friday around 5:45 p.m. just outside of El Paso.

Investigators say Lynch was driving on a two-way highway, heading eastbound, when the driver of a Dodge Ram, heading westbound, attempted to pass another vehicle. As the driver traveled onto the oncoming lane, they crashed into Lynch's vehicle head-on, authorities said.

Lynch's vehicle came to a stop and "was inoperable," authorities said. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver of the Dodge Ram was rushed to a nearby hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. According to Texas DPS, Lynch was not wearing a seatbelt.

The band - now known as just The Chicks - posted a statement on its official X account calling the artist "a bright light."

Lynch, an upright-bass player, founded The Dixie Chicks alongside three other women in 1989, according to the band's biography on Country Music Television's website.

Lynch left the country-music band in the mid-1990s shortly before they broke through to larger commercial success.

In June 2020, the band dropped "Dixie" from its name over concerns that the word had negative associations with the South's racial history.

This is a developing story. This article will continue to be updated as more information becomes available.