Thousands of sobbing students and teachers prayed and comforted one another on Georgia Southern University's campus Thursday night during an emotional memorial service for five nursing students who were killed in a fiery crash. College juniors Emily Clark, 20, of Powder Springs, Morgan Bass, 20, of Leesburg, Abbie Deloach, 21, of Savannah, Catherine Pittman, 21, of Alpharetta and Caitlyn Baggett, 21, of Millen, perished early Wednesday morning on their way to school when a tractor-trailer plowed into traffic on Interstate 16, setting off a deadly chain reaction. Fellow students Brittney McDaniel, of Reidsville, and Megan Richards, of Loganville, survived the crash but were hospitalized with injuries. Scroll down for video . River of tears: Members of the Georgia Southern Nursing program console one each during a candlelight vigil and memorial service Thursday for five nursing students who were killed in a multi-vehicle accident . Overcome with emotion: Crystal Whitmire, right, comforts fellow student Layne Livingston . Sisters in mourning: Kappa Delta sorority members arrive arm-in-arm dressed in white for the Memorial Service on Sweetheart Circle at Georgia Southern University . Members of the Georgia Southern Nursing program walk to take their seats before a candlelight vigil . Thousands bow in an opening prayer gathering for the Memorial Service on Sweetheart Circle . Tragedy: A Georgia state trooper works the scene of a deadly crash in which five nursing students from Georgia Southern University died Wednesday morning . Victims: Abbie Deloach (left), of Savannah, and Emily Clark, of Powder Springs, (right) were among the five young women killed in the horrific crash . Sad: Caitlynn Baggett (left), of Millen, and Catherine McKay Pittman, of Alpharetta, (right) were also killed . Terrible loss: Leesburg woman Morgan Bass was also killed in the horrific crash . The driver of the tractor-trailer that caused the massive pileup reportedly said he wished he was also killed in the fiery wreck, but it was no consolation to the students' grief-stricken families, friends and classmates who converged on Sweetheart Circle on campus for a candlelight vigil. GSU nursing students were the first to arrive, wearing their signature white lab coats, reported Atlanta Journal Constitution. They were followed by members of sororities that had lost sisters in the wreck. University President Dr Brooks Keel fought back tears as he addressed the swelling crowd of mourners on a breezy Georgia evening. 'Eagle Nation is a family,' he said, imploring the audience to hold on to each other and the love they have for one another. The girls' friends in the nursing program shared their personal memories of the deceased, like Caitlyn's funny text messages, Morgan's penchant for pink outfits and Abbie's prowess on the basketball court. The touching memorial service lasted 45 minutes and included a reading of the Nightingale Pledge- a modified Hippocratic Oath named after Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing famed for her exploits in the Crimean War. The somber event concluded with a candle-lighting ceremony. As a thousand tiny flames danced in the evening breeze at sunset, a cello player performed a mournful piece of music by Bach. Authorities said the driver responsible for the collission, identified as 55-year-old John Wayne Johnston, of Total Transportation LLC, failed to slow down while traveling on Interstate 16 near Savannah and plowed into stop-and-go traffic. The tractor-trailer slammed into an SUV, then rolled over a small passenger car that burst into flames, said Sgt. 1st Class Chris Nease of the Georgia State Patrol. A mourner places a white rose on to a memorial centered around a cardboard white cross emblazoned with the words 'Class of 2016' Somber mood: A cello player performed Bach as people in the crowd wept at sunset . Georgia Southern University President Brooks Keel, left, and Dean of Students Patrice Jackson hug; Georgia Southern University students Teyaijah Givins, right, and Coretta Moye console one another . Mourners shared private memories associated with each one of the girls killed in the horrific crash . The president of the university urged students to hold on to one another and the love they share . Family members embrace arriving with thousands for the memorial service . The big truck came to a halt after slamming into the back of a tanker. A Good Samaritan who stopped at the site of the  multi-vehicle collission and tried to rescue the victims said he briefly spoke to the driver of the truck. 'He said he wished he died too,' the witness told WSB-TV Thursday. St. Joseph's/ Candler Health System said the deceased students were commuting to St. Joseph's Hospital in Savannah for their last day of clinical training of the school year. 'The loss of any student, especially in a tragic way, is particularly painful,' Brooks Keel, president of Georgia Southern, said in a statement. 'Losing five students is almost incomprehensible.' The Georgia State Patrol said three people also were injured and seven vehicles were damaged. The crash occurred at about 6am in Bryan County, about 20 miles west of Savannah. Traffic was heavy at that hour because an unrelated wreck about a mile ahead that forced motorists to slow, Nease said. 'Traffic was sort of stop-and-go when the tractor-trailer came along and struck one of the passenger vehicles in the rear,' Nease said. 'We're still trying to piece it all together. It's a terrible day.' The university said the students were all Georgia residents in their junior year. Students weep and hold lit candles during the Memorial Service on Sweetheart Circle . Bereaved: Georgia Southern University student Caitlin Hopkins, far left, writes a message for a memory board . Circle of grief: A group of mourners gather for a communal prayer on campus . Moral support: Members of Alpha Delta Xi sorority hug one another during the emotional memorial . Sacred text: Members of the Georgia Southern Nursing program read 'The Nightingale Pledge' - a modified Hippocratic Oath named after Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing . This little light of mine: Mourners hold candles during a candlelight vigil at Georgia Southern's Stateboro campus in Statesboro, Georgia . Fragrant tribute: Fellow nursing students and sorority sisters lay flowers in tribute to their deceased friends next to a poster board featuring the girls' photographs . Hospital officials said they were wrapping up clinical training for the year. 'You could tell they really loved what they did,' Sherry Danello, the hospital's chief nursing officer, said in a statement. 'They didn't just go through the task, they really connected to the patients.' The crash halted some motorists for more than six hours as road crews and tow trucks cleared the wreckage. Even when traffic began moving again, troopers kept a 6-mile stretch of eastbound I-16 closed as they investigated. Nease said the driver of the tractor-trailer, identified as John Johnson, from Shreveport, Louisiana, had not been cited as investigators worked to determine exactly what happened. Georgia authorities say it could take months before they decide whether to file criminal charges in the crash. Sgt. 1st Class Chris Nease, commander of the State Patrol Post investigating the crash, said Thursday he expects it will take several months for his team assigned to reconstruct the deadly crash to complete its report. Tom Durden, the district attorney for Bryan County where the collision occurred, said crash investigations can be complicated because it's not always obvious whether crimes were committed. 'There was no fog or smoke. It was clear as a bell,' said Sgt. Chris Rodewolt of the State Patrol. 'We did have heavy, heavy traffic.' Inferno: John Wayne Johnson's tractor-trailer plowed into traffic on Interstate 16, sparking a fiery pileup . Mangled: The five women, all of them juniors, were driving separately in two vehicles that were both mangled in the accident . Terrible accident: The Georgia State Patrol said three people also were injured and seven vehicles were damaged . WSB-TV reported that Johnson was employed by Total Transportation, a large trucking company based in Mississippi boasting 900 drivers and nearly 750 vehicles. US Department of Transportation safety records indicate that Total Transportation drivers have received 266 citations for driving violations and 600 maintenance violations over the past two years. During the same time period, company vehicles have been involved in 85 crashes leading to 27 injuries. Total Transportation CEO John Stomps issued a statement saying his company was cooperating with the investigation. Two mangled passenger vehicles rested Wednesday at the bottom of an embankment beside the interstate. In front of them, just off the highway, was a tractor-trailer with its cab smashed into the back of a tanker truck. Georgia Southern University flew flags at half-staff on campus Thursday morning, and a tear has been added to the school's eagle mascot in remembrance of the tragedy. The student leadership of the Student Nurses' Association, Kappa Delta Sorority, Alpha Delta Pi Sorority and Alpha Omicron Pi Sorority have invited the Georgia Southern community to a memorial that will be held Thursday at 7pm on campus on Sweetheart Circle. In mourning: Flags fly at half-staff at Georgia Southern University on Thursday, while senior Katie Pursley, 21, shows a drawing of the school mascot, an eagle, with a tear to symbolize the grief of the university . It is with a heavy heart that I inform you of a tragedy that took place this morning. Several Georgia Southern students died and two were injured in an early morning crash on I-16 eastbound near Savannah. We are unable to release the names of these students at this time because we are awaiting notification to families. Every one of our students contributes in no small measure, to the Eagle Nation. The loss of any student, especially in a tragic way, is particularly painful. Losing five students is almost incomprehensible. Our hearts go out to the families, friends and classmates of these students. The University flag will fly at half-staff Thursday in their memory. Memorial arrangements are pending. Let me urge those particularly touched by this tragedy to avail themselves of counseling services, and I urge all members of the University community to support each other during this time. Source: WBTW .
The women were traveling near Savannah in two vehicles when a tractor-trailer plowed into an SUV, then rolled over a small car . Killed were Emily Clark, Morgan Bass, Abbie Deloach, Catherine Pittman and Caitlyn Baggett - All juniors at Georgia Southern University . The Georgia State Patrol said three people also were injured and seven vehicles were damaged . It could take investigators months to determine whether to file criminal charges against trucker John Wayne Johnson . Johnson was employed by trucking company based out of Mississippi whose drivers have racked up 266 violations over past two years .