NEED TO KNOW
- Ada Hansen, 2, was struck by a truck in Utah on Sept. 5 and died from her injuries
- The 18-year-old driver who hit her is cooperating with local authorities
- The toddler’s father, Kyley Hansen, drowned in a pool at an Independence Day party in 2023
One Utah family is grieving the loss of a second relative after tragedy struck twice, just two years apart.
In July 2023, Layton, Utah resident Angela Hansen lost her husband Kyley Hansen after he drowned in a pool during an Independence Day party, NBC affiliate KSL-TV reported. This month, the mother of four lost her little girl, Ada, who was struck and killed by a truck and later identified in a GoFundMe established by a loved one.
The fatal incident occurred on Friday, Sept. 5, the Layton City Police Department said in a statement. Around 10 a.m. local time, first responders arrived at the parking lot of a Shiny Shell Carwash, where the two-year-old girl had been struck by a vehicle.
She was flown to a hospital in critical condition, but later died from her injuries.
Police’s preliminary investigation found that the girl’s mother, identified as Angela Hansen in the GoFundMe, was parked next to a truck operated by an 18-year-old man.
“Two children were outside of the vehicles when the driver completed cleaning his vehicle and began to leave,” police said. “The two-year-old child, positioned near the front passenger side of the truck, was struck. The driver has been fully cooperative with investigators.”
Ada was playing in a gated playground, but her 4-year-old sister let them both out and the pair began walking together because Ada wanted her mother, the children’s aunt told Fox affiliate KSTU. They were making their way over to their mother when the collision occurred.
“Her sister said that she was holding her hand, and she tried to stop it, and she said she couldn’t, he didn’t see, but she tried to put her hands up and say stop,” Lauren Paskett told the station.
“It’s been easier knowing that she’s with her dad, because he did pass away two years before that,” she added.
The toddler is survived by her three other siblings — Asher, 9, Naomi, 7 and Violet, 4 — in addition to their mother, the GoFundMe author noted.
“There is no blame in this heartbreaking accident — only compassion,” the GoFundMe author wrote.
“She was quite literally everybody’s baby and we just loved and cherished her. She is so sweet,” Paskett told KSTU.
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According to the toddler’s obituary, she was born just a few months after her father died.
“Every day of Ada’s life was filled with care, laughter, and joy from her devoted family,” the obituary said.