Colorado family member speaks after multiple kids, father die in crash on Highway 83: "Hug your family a little tighter"

In an instant, a Colorado family, and a mother's life, has flipped upside down.

"Everyone is doing the best they can," said Jose Rodriguez.

Rodriguez is the uncle of 8-year-old Torretto, 11-year-old MaKenlee, and 13-year-old Mia Corado. All three children were among the five children who were riding in the car with their father, Alvin, when a carjacking suspect struck their car on Highway 83 on Monday afternoon.

"We share a Life360 app and my fiancé noticed there was a crash alert," said Rodriguez.

Rodriguez says that app is what alerted them and police that something had happened. It was through social media that he found out both Toretto and MaKenlee were among the five people who died in the crash. Their father and another young boy also died.

"It's like losing another son. It's exactly how it feels -- and losing a daughter," said Rodriguez.

The eldest, Mia, and a fifth boy, were airlifted to Children's Hospital Colorado in Aurora. Mia is making a steady recovery despite her injuries.

"From what we understand, her liver was lacerated, her pelvis was fractured, and she had a protrusion, or hole, in her esophagus, but thank God she's recovering well," said Rodriguez. "We've patched her up. She's conscious. She's responding well. All the doctors are in good spirits of her recovery."

A family now coping through the heartbreak is reliving the joy these young lives brought them.

"Just firecrackers. (MaKenlee's) always got the jokes. Toretto is always full of life (and) building little inventions with his papers. Spider-Man was always his favorite," said Rodriguez. "All three of them, they are their mother's children. They do have the same love, and compassion and enjoyment of life. That's what they were. They lit up the room any time they walked in."

Family members are now working to help the children's mother and are crowdfunding to support the long road in Mia's recovery.

"That GoFundMe is critical right now," said Rodriguez. "That's going to take her out of work for months. The medical bills are not going to cover themselves, and also, we have to transfer our two poor babies back to where their hometown is, Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Have the funerals and bury them with all the honors and love that they deserve."

Rodriguez says their family's gut-wrenching start to the holidays is a reminder of how quickly one moment can change everything.

"Life is precious, and it can change in an instant," said Rodriguez. "Hug your family a little tighter."