A Kansas mother and her four young children were killed when a truck allegedly ran a red light and smashed into their SUV.
On Friday evening, authorities responded to a crash at 71st and 263rd streets near Viola. Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office officials said a family was traveling southbound in an SUV that collided with a truck heading east, according to KAKE and WKCH.
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All five family members in the SUV died. They were later identified as Jessica Noel, 32, Anaiah Brady, 10, Jeffrey Thompson III, 4, and Mack Thompson, 1, and 4-month-old Hank Thompson, according to a GoFundMe page.
The driver of the truck was not seriously injured.
Noel’s family says she had taken her four children grocery shopping.
“On Friday, September 25th, 2020, my Uncle Jeff returned home with my cousin Brooklyn (10) after work to an empty house after his wife said she was getting groceries but had not returned with the four other children,” according to the GoFundMe. “Jeff made phone calls and then got a call from a good friend concerned about a car accident close to their home. Jeff went to the scene of the accident.”
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Noel’s family was told by authorities that the SUV was struck by a grain-filled semi-truck that ran a red light going 55 miles per hour. Noel, Anaiah, Jeffrey and Hank died upon impact while Mack was transported to a nearby hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.
“We are asking for assistance to pay for the medical expenses and funeral arrangements for all 5 members of the family,” the GoFundMe organizer wrote. “Anything you can give will be appreciated during this extremely difficult time of grief and unfathomable loss.”
As of Monday, the page has raised more than $66,000 of its $80,000 goal.
The identity of the truck driver has not been released. It is unclear whether the driver will be charged.
