FLORIDA — A Northeast Ohio boy has been identified as one of two people killed in a New Year’s Eve crash in Florida.
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Five people were traveling in a Sedan on State Road 20 in Calhoun County on Sunday, according to Florida Highway Patrol troopers.
Troopers say there was a curve, and the driver did not fully turn the car and it drifted into the shoulder, according to CBS affiliate WOIO in Cleveland.
The driver overcorrected, swerving back on the road, and ended up in a ditch. The car flipped several times throwing all but one person out of the car.
Tyler Donathan, 8, was identified as one of the victims killed in the crash. The other victim was a 56-year-old Ohio woman.
A 36-year-old Ohio woman suffered serious injuries as did a 78-year-old Florida woman, WOIO reports.
Donna Kite says her brother, Keith, is in the ICU.
“He’s got a broken collar bone, some fractures, and he’s got a brain bleed,” she said. “He said it feels like a nightmare and he can’t wake up.”
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Kite spoke with WOIO about her nephew Tyler.
“We can’t stop thinking about him,” she said. “It’s like your heart’s breaking and you don’t know when to stop because he was so young. He had his whole life in front of him.”
Kite said that Tyler, who had special needs, was full of life and loved playing video games and going to Chucky Cheese.
She told WOIO that both were in Florida to visit friends during the holidays.
“They left Golden Corral and that’s when the accident happened,” she said.
She said her brother will be in the hospital for another month and the family is raising money to bring her nephew’s body back to Ohio for funeral services.
“Tyler, I’ll always remember Tyler as a happy little boy,” she said. “He just loved life; he was very special, very special.”
Charges against the driver are pending, the Florida Highway Patrol said.
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