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A married couple killed in an explosion on the Rainbow Bridge connecting the U.S.-Canada borders at Niagara Falls was identified by authorities on Friday (November 24), NBC News reports.
Monica and Kurt P Villani, both 53, of Grand Island, New York, died in the "vehicle explosion" on the Rainbow Bridge, which connects Niagara Falls, Canada, and Niagara Falls, New York, on Wednesday (November 22). Witnesses said the vehicle went airborne before striking a cement median, at which point it caught fire and exploded as it hit a border crossing booth.
"The City of Niagara Falls would like to extend our sincere condolences to the families as they deal with this tragedy," said Niagara Falls Police Superintendent John Faso in a news release obtained by NBC News.
The couple's identities were shared publicly after their family members were notified about their deaths. No additional details were made available at the time of Friday's update.
Niagara Falls Mayor Robert Restaino previously said investigators believed that the couple was headed to a Kiss concert -- which was canceled after frontman and guitarist Paul Stanley was sick with the flu -- in Canada at the time of the crash during a news briefing on Thursday (November 23).
Authorities are continuing to investigate the explosion, but had determined that there were no explosives or suspected terrorism linked to the fatal accident.