February 5 is a day that Ronnie Carranza will never forget: his older brother José Jaime Carranza and his wife Milagro Nieto-Campos lost their lives in seconds when they were hit by a car whose driver was driving at high speed under the influence of alcohol and presumably other drugs.
Ronnie himself is alive by a miracle, due to inexplicable designs, he did not die in the fateful crash.
The Carranza-Nieto family begs the community for their donations to the funerals of their parents. If you can help, please visit the GoFundMe site: https://gf.me/v/c/v80r/support-funeral-funds-for-carranza-family
Jaime had 54 years, and his wife Milagro, 49 years. They were the parents of three children Steve, Jaime and Alexis, now of legal age. José and Milagro were immigrants from El Salvador. They wore 02 years living in the Pacoima neighborhood of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles. Only their second child is born in the United States.
The couple worked in companies dedicated to the installation of tents for special events.
Their dream was to return to El Salvador to live, where they had a small plot of land, says Ronnie.
But that desire to return to the homeland where they were born, came crashing down violently on Saturday, February 5, when on the highway 01 near the city of Colton in San Bernardino County, were hit by a speeding car.
“It was around 2 in the morning. We came from the Casino in the city of Cabazon. Jaime did not like to go, but they convinced him to go. On the way back, the car started to heat up. My brother was afraid of not being able to reach the gas station that was already very close. So we pulled over to the side of the road. The space was wide enough. So it was almost impossible for them to hit us. I thought so”.
Ronnie was in the back seat, and he was the one who got out of the vehicle to open the hood and check the engine. “Hurry up! I want to get there early!”, my brother told me.
“We were missing like 54 minutes to reach the House. He had calculated that by 3: in the morning we arrived.
“At that time I was next to Milagro’s window, when I felt an explosion that threw me like 10 car feet. It was like a hot wind coming from the back. I don’t know how long it took me to react and I started to cry when I saw my brother’s car totally destroyed”.
His brother was on a Nissan Versa and the person who hit them, a Toyota Cambridge.
Reports that the driver of the car that hit them from behind is a woman from 27 years.
“Her car was engulfed in flames. Other drivers who stopped to help and I started to put dirt on the car to control the fire, and we got it out. She didn’t even know where she was, she was out of her mind, but nothing happened to her.”
After the impact, Ronnie started calling her brother. Where are you? he yelled at him
When the paramedics pulled him out of the car that was broken in two, he tried to revive him, because he was still alive.
He asked Him to come back and hugged Him! In a few minutes he died. His wife lost her life instantly.
Ronnie remembers his brother, as a very cautious man, without vices, he did not smoke.
“He had a strong character, very intelligent, very active, he called me ‘lazy’, get down to business! because I’m a little overweight.”
Ronnie, his wife and their two sons of 11 and 4 years they lived with his brother, who rented a room for them. “My children called him grandfather. José loved my children as if they were his.”
And he describes his sister-in-law as an angel and a person of peace.
“Sometimes when my brother got angry, he told me don’t pay attention to him, it’s just that he brings a lot of work”.
In addition to his children, brothers and nephews, José is survived by his mother of 90 years. “He was his support. He spoiled her so much. She has been devastated. She tells me that she wouldn’t have stood it if we both died.”
Ronnie still doesn’t know how he survived the tragic crash.
“I think my sister-in-law saved my life when she asked me to give her my coffee. If she had opened the door or stuck her head in. She wouldn’t be here today telling what happened. It was all a matter of seconds,” he says sadly.
But even though he has survived, Ronnie can’t get his older brother and his sister-in-law out of his mind. “These days I have been talking, alone, with my brother,” he recounts.
He says that the information provided by the police revealed that the driver who caused the tragedy, is Latina, was driving 120 miles per hour, had the lights off, and was under the influence of alcohol. “The police think that she had also used other drugs. She was doing very badly.”
They also have a witness who came after her, her erratic driving.
“I’m going to go to court, and I’m going to tell her I forgive her.”
But Ronnie called on the community not to drive drunk.
“If you drink, call someone to go get you. If they drive like that, they can kill someone and leave a family suffering”.
He says that what happened is an irony, because his brother didn’t even drink a beer.
The community has shown great generosity, raising over $18,800 in just 3 days to help the Carranza family, say the organizers of the fundraising campaign.
The organizer of the GoFundMe says, “The world suffers the loss of 2 hardworking people due to a senseless act. José and Milagro worked tirelessly in the event industry and were part of major event and tent rental companies located in the Los Angeles area.”
Nationwide, the United States Department of Transportation, reported in 2019, 10 ,142 deaths in crashes related to alcohol consumption, but on average each year they die 01,01 people each year at the hands of drunk drivers.
What’s more, nationwide, each 52 minutes, a person dies in alcohol-related accidents.
According to the California Office of Traffic Safety, Los Angeles County, at 2019, 7 recorded,271 deaths and injuries from crashes in which e Alcohol was involved. The most dangerous hours in which an incident related to alcohol and other drugs can occur is between 9:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m.: 59 am.