Tragedy struck Florida after a horrific crash left nine members of one family, including six children, dead after they were traveling back from a relative’s 80th birthday party on Monday night.
Emergency services in Palm Beach County, in the southeastern part of the Sunshine State, received calls about an SUV that had fallen into a canal near the town of Belle Glade around 7:30 p.m.
Emergency crews found the SUV, a 2023 Ford Explorer, upside down with only its wheels above water. Sources told local media that the canal is about 6 feet deep and the surrounding ground was particularly muddy on Monday due to recent heavy rains.
Four of the ten people who were in the car at the time died at the scene of the accident, while the other six were taken to hospital. Five of these people later died in hospital, while one remains in a serious condition.
The nine people who died were identified as 5-year-old Kamdien Edwards, 21-year-old Anyia Monique Lee Tucker, 56-year-old Pamela Wiggins, who was driving the vehicle at the time, 1-year-old Naleia Tucker, 5-year-old Yasire Smith, 8-year-old Imani Andrea Ajani Hall, 14-year-old Michael Anthony Hall Jr., 30-year-old Leiana Alyse Hall and 3-year-old Ziare Mack.
The only survivor was reported to be 26-year-old Jorden Hall.
Tragedy struck Florida after a horrific accident left nine members of the same family, including six children (pictured) dead.
First responders (pictured) found the truck, a 2023 Ford Explorer, upside down with only its wheels above the water.
Sources told local media that the canal (pictured) is around 6 feet deep and the surrounding ground was particularly muddy on Monday due to recent heavy rains.
Palm Beach County Fire Capt. Tom Reyes said, “I’ve been with the department for 20 years and this is one of the toughest scenes I’ve ever been on.”
The ten were in Florida for an elderly relative’s 80th birthday and were heading to an airport to fly back to their home in Connecticut.
Serious questions have been raised as to whether this tragedy could have been avoided.
According to an official accident report obtained by local media, no one in the car was wearing “safety equipment” – namely seat belts – while travelling on the highway.
For unknown reasons, Wiggins failed to navigate the sharp, narrow curve, which was so tight that a car and truck would have struggled to get through at the same time. The report did not indicate how fast the car was going when it crashed.
In addition, Ford Explorer drivers are asked to never carry more than seven people in their vehicles at a time.
But relatives have said the car, a rental car, was having problems at the time.
Anntianette Edwards, whose only son, Kamdien Edwards, tragically passed away, said that while the family had notified the rental company about the unspecified problems, they did not want to drive two hours to get a new vehicle since they were returning to Connecticut that day.
Relatives have since shared their horror at losing so many loved ones at once.
Edwards said: ‘I knew something was wrong, I called the airline and they told me they hadn’t been able to board their flight.
“It’s like a bad nightmare.”
She revealed that her son was about to start school, adding: “He was happy, funny, he wasn’t afraid of anything. He was a daredevil. He was a happy baby who we gave everything he wanted.”
Antoine Wright, a cousin of the victims, added: ‘My family has been through a lot and I just need everyone to pray.
“My family is going to need a lot of strength, prayer and support in this situation.”
A GoFundMe page has since been set up to cover the funeral costs of the nine people who tragically died.
As of this writing, just under $15,000 of the $100,000 goal has been raised.
