MADERA COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) — Three siblings were killed Saturday evening when a minivan collided with a semi-truck at a rural intersection in Madera County, authorities said.
Family members identified the victims as 6-year-old Serenity Valenzuela, 15-year-old James Valle and 17-year-old Jezzy Valle.
“They were all cheerful and always full of life, just smiling,” said their cousin, Benny Ramirez Jr.
They were all cheerful and always full of life.
Benny Ramirez Jr., cousin
The crash happened at Avenue 7 and Road 24, where a memorial of flowers and balloons now stands.
The California Highway Patrol said a 48-year-old woman driving a minivan with her three children and their grandmother ran a stop sign and was struck by an oncoming semi.
The CHP says alcohol and drugs do not appear to be factors.
Ramirez said the driver, his cousin, was a single mother devoted to her children.
“Her whole life was around the kids because she was a single mother. That was her thing: worrying about taking care of her kids. That was her main priority,” he stated.
The family had left his home, less than a quarter mile away, moments before the crash.
“We heard a big bang, they went to check and we realized she had been involved in an accident,” he recalled.
The CHP said the children were wearing seatbelts incorrectly, with the straps only across their laps.
“As a driver, pay attention to the road and you are also responsible for all the passengers in your vehicle,” CHP Officer Sergio Moreno said. “They have to be wearing seatbelts, especially the little ones.”
Both drivers and the grandmother were injured but are expected to survive.
The intersection has been the site of multiple fatal crashes, and Ramirez called it dangerous because of limited warning signs.
“There are no signs right there saying stop ahead until you get to the stop sign,” he explained.
The family has set up a GoFundMe page to help with expenses.
