Miss-Delectable
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PHP:
Four young lives were lost in the Haines City collision Monday.
HAINES CITY -- Luis Espinoza and his girlfriend, Yesenia Jaimes, had come home for the weekend from a school for the deaf and blind in St. Augustine.
They were supposed to go back to the school Sunday, but Jaimes, 20, was not feeling well.
Monday morning the couple were involved in a two-car crash at Johnson Avenue and Power Line Road that killed Jaimes, her brother Hector Jaimes, 17, his girlfriend Zenaida Mosqueda, 18, and their 2-month-old daughter, Jasmine Jaimes. Espinoza, 19, is in critical condition at Lakeland Regional Medical Center.
"We don't know where they were going," said Javier Jaimes, 28, Hector and Yesenia's older brother. "When we heard about the accident, we all just came as fast as we could."
Cesar Jaimes, 23, said Yesenia was deaf and mute. He said Espinoza also had hearing problems and the two had met at the school in St. Augustine.
"She was the pride of the family," Cesar Jaimes said. "She was one of the best students. She loved it there. She was very smart."
Javier Jaimes said the couple planned to get married next year.
Friends and family members gathered at the family home on Oak Hollow Drive in Haines City on Tuesday.
Karina Cisernos, who was helping the family with funeral arrangements, said she still cannot believe the accident happened.
"It just doesn't seem right," she said.
According to police, Espinoza ran the stop sign at the intersection. His car was hit by a Dodge Durango driven by Dielita Bakken of Kissimmee, who was driving west on Johnson Avenue about 10:50 a.m. Monday.
Espinoza, who was wearing a seat belt, was heading north on Power Line Road. Yesenia Jaimes was in the front passenger seat. She was not wearing her seat belt.
Police said Tuesday they had not yet determined whether speed was a factor in the crash.
"It is still under investigation," Haines City Police Lt. Brian McNulty said.
Bakken, 56, was on her way to her job in Auburndale when the accident happened.
"All I remember is they crossed right in front of me," Bakken said from her home Tuesday. "They didn't stop. I had the flashing yellow light. I didn't have to stop."
Bakken said she was going maybe five miles over the posted speed limit of 45 mph.
She said she did not think Espinoza was speeding either.
"I feel so sad for the family," Bakken said. "They were all so young. They were just starting their lives.
"This is just such a tragedy," she said.
Bakken sustained minor injuries in the accident and has a cast on her wrist.
Family members said the young couples were just getting started with their lives.
Javier Jaimes said his brother, Hector, was a student at the Don Woods Center.
"He was studying air conditioning," he said. "He really enjoyed doing that. That was what he wanted to do."
Javier Jaimes said his brother and Mosqueda had been together for several years.
Cisneros said Espinoza wants to be a chef and he and Yesenia were going to move to Tampa after they were married.
"He really liked to cook. Fox News had done a piece on him about him learning to do everything being partially deaf," she said.
Funeral arrangements were still being worked out Tuesday afternoon.
Police said the intersection is a dangerous one.
There were eight accidents at the intersection in 2004. The last fatality was in 2001, according to county transportation officials.
McNulty said police often use radar in the area to discourage speeders.
"They were running radar out there today," McNulty said.
A steady stream of cars heading west on Johnson Avenue appeared to be going faster than the posted speed limit at 2:25 p.m. Tuesday.
"It is a bad intersection," McNulty said. "We do our best to actively enforce all the speed limits in town. I am sure the patrol division will be keeping an eye on that area."http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050209/NEWS/502090342/1004