FHP: 14-Year-Old Was Driving SUV
SUV Crashed Into Pond Saturday, Killing Woman, Injuring 4 Others
POSTED: Monday, December 7, 2009
UPDATED: 6:31 pm EST December 7,
2009
ORLANDO, Fla. -- The Florida Highway Patrol said Monday that 14-year-old Ariel King was driving an SUV that went off the road and landed upside down in an Orlando pond Saturday afternoon.
The crash, involving a Jacksonville family, killed 34-year-old Dana King and injured four others -- three of them children.
According to troopers, a 2004 GMC Yukon carrying the family was in a parking lot at the Floridays Resort off South International Drive when it went through a fence and plunged 9 feet off the pavement into the pond and overturned.
Two children -- Ariel King and 3-year-old Brealyn Nesmith -- were rescued from the vehicle by tourists and an Orange County deputy. They were hospitalized in critical condition and each remain on life support at two Orlando hospitals.
Brad Nesmith, 33, and 13-year-old Taylor Nesmith managed to get out of the vehicle on their own and were recovering from minor injuries at an Orlando hospital.
Channel 4 was told Dana King was engaged to Brad Nesmith. They lived with the children in their Oceanway home.
Friends said the family was close, and they are stunned by the tragedy.
"Everything bad happens around Christmas. I can't believe that," neighbor Jessica Sturgeon said. "Brad and Dana really loved each other. It's going to be terrible going through the holidays without her. They had such a wonderful family."
The FHP is still investigating the accident.
The family's friends are planning a vigil to pray for Ariel King and Brealyn Nesmith that will be held Tuesday night at 7:15 at the Landing in downtown Jacksonville.
A Vystar Credit Union account has been set up to help the family with funeral expenses. The account number to donate funds to is 702799326.
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