Just days before Christmas, a family suffered a devastating loss when four loved ones, including a 9-year-old boy, were killed in a rollover crash in Escondido Sunday.
Friends of the family cannot stop thinking about the young life cut way too short.
“He was only 9 years old,” said Joey Siboro, a friend of victim Timothy Silalahi. “It’s just not… it’s just not fair, you know? He was 9 years old.”
Friends say Timothy, his grandmother, an aunt and a friend visiting from Indonesia died when their SUV rolled down an embankment near Nordahl Road off east SR-78. The boy had just celebrated his birthday last month.
Also inside the Toyota Sequoia were Timothy’s mother and two sisters, who were all hospitalized after the accident. The group from Loma Linda was driving home from a relative’s house in Carlsbad, and the CHP says the Sequoia collided with a Chevy Sonic changing lanes before flying off the road. The siblings’ father was not in the car with them.
The friends visiting the victims in the hospital Monday attend the same Seventh Day Adventist church in Loma Linda as the family. Susie Siboro, Joey’s mother, said Timothy was the family’s only boy.
“He’s a miracle child,” said Susie through tears. “More than 10 years they’ve been waiting for him. They’ve been waiting for him more than 10 years. And I hope all of us will be faithful. We will see them again in heaven.”
Officials have not yet released the identities of the three other victims killed in the crash.
“It was just tragic for our family because, you know, Timmy, he’s part of the church,” said Joey. “The church will never ever be the same. It’s a community, and when a family member grieves from a loss like that, everybody grieves.”
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The conditions of the mother and sisters in the hospital are not known. The driver of the Chevy Sonic was not hurt. Officers initially arrested him but have since let him go as they continue their investigation.
Authorities say at this point, alcohol, drugs and speed were not factors.
