CLAY COUNTY, Fla. – A fatal four-vehicle crash in Clay County took the lives of three children on Monday, tearing apart a vacationing family.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, 8-year-old Victoria Brandt, 5-year-old Michael Buttafuoco and 3-year-old Ann Marie Buttafuoco lost their lives in the wreck.
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A day after the fatal wreck, locked in a neck brace, Michele Donatelli of Orange Park cried as she told Channel 4's Emily Pantelides about the tragedy in which her family was involved.
"He hit us and he ended up hitting my sister and killing my niece and nephew. We don't have them anymore," Donatelli said through tears. "This is just so hard. It's just doesn't seem right."
A sport utility vehicle was heading west into Clay County off the Shands Bridge on state Route 16 at 12:30 p.m., Florida Highway Patrol spokesman Bill Leeper said. As the vehicle approached a slight curve, two minivans and a pickup truck came from the opposite direction on the two-lane road.
Investigators said the westbound SUV crossed the centerline and hit the three eastbound vehicles, which held Donatelli and her family members.
Comforted by one of her sisters and a cousin, Donatelli said she is barley getting by. Her other sister, Lisa Buttafuoco remained in the hospital in serious condition on Monday, and her children's beloved playmates -- Ann Marie and Mikey -- are dead.
"It's very sad when anyone is killed, particularly when you have young kids because they're helpless, innocent victims," Leeper said.
"I'm beside myself. I lost my dearest niece and nephew. Our family's in terrible mourning," Donatelli said.
She said the entire family had planned their vacation to Florida for months. Her mother and father came down from New York and her sister came from Pennsylvania with her two kids. Another sister traveled from West Palm Beach with her husband to join the family gathering.
"We were just going to have a family day," Donatelli said.
The whole family was on its way to St. Augustine when tragedy struck. All three of the vehicles in the family's caravan were totaled.
Donatelli, her husband and their two children were in a blue minivan. Following close behind in a white Chrysler minivan was Lisa Buttafuoco, their parents and two children. Behind Buttafuoco was another sister and her husband.
Reports state the children were wearing seat belts, but the crash caused them to be ejected from the vehicle.
Donatellis described how her emotion swung within seconds after the crash.
"I grabbed a pair of scissors I had in my pocketbook and I cut myself out and cut my husband out, so we could reach our children. I was just so happy to hear them crying. I said, 'They're alive,'" she said. "When I got out of the car, I heard my sister say, 'Mickey's dead.'"
Donatelli had a note from her injured sister saying, "How can this happen? I don't understand. Michael and Ann Marie were my soul and my life's light."
The family said it would like people to know they were going to deal with the tragedy together, as a family.
The wreck has prompted residents in the area where the wreck took place to ask for changes.
One homeowner said she and others have tried to get the Department of Traffic to take action in the past.
The DOT said S.R. 16 near Susan Drive is not considered overly dangerous because there were only six major accidents there from 2003 to 2006 and no fatalities.
However, the department also said a review would be done because of Monday's deaths.
Previous Stories:
- February 19, 2007: TRAFFIC ALERT: S.R. 16, Shands Bridge Reopened
- February 20, 2007: 3 Children Die, 5 People Injured In Wreck On S.R. 16