5 injured in Coral Way crash
A car was destroyed after it collided with an 18-wheeler in southwest Miami-Dade early Friday, sending five people to hospitals.
The truck driver, whom police identified as Larry Donell Robinson, 47, of Baxley, Ga., walked away without a scratch, while all people in the white Honda Accord weren't wearing seat belts and got seriously hurt, police said.
The victims were rushed to Baptist Hospital and Kendall Regional Medical Center. Two were in critical condition.
Richard Estrella said his niece, Alexandria Estrella, 23, was driving the car at the time of the crash.
"She received the blunt of the impact in the chest. This complicated her heart," said Richard Estrella.
Alexandria Estrella is fighting for her life at a hospital.
"It's atrocious. When you receive a call early in the morning, you know it's not going to be good news," said Richard Estrella.
Coral Way was shut down for hours at Southwest 84th Avenue while detectives tried to piece together what happened. Police said it turned out the car was speeding, and witnesses told police that the driver was racing another car just before the impact.
"There is over 150 feet of skid marks, so at a minimum, these individuals were traveling at 108 feet per second," said Miami-Dade police Detective Alvaro Zabaleta.
"Luckily, out of the six people involved in this accident, five will walk away from this -- bumps, bruises, surgeries. But, the one we're praying for now is Alex. She is critical," said Richard Estrellla.
Miami-Dade police identified the four other people with injuries after the crash as Ana Posada, 18, who is in critical condition, Jovanni Oliva, 20, Anthony Emmanuel Del Rio, 18, and Moises Arnold Alvarez, 18.
Doctors said their goal is to bring Alexandria Estrella off the ventilator and back to breathing on her own again.
Detectives said once they recover, police need to talk to the five people who were inside the car to get the whole story on what led up to this crash.
