Loved Ones Mourn Calabasas Mother Of 3 Killed In 101 Freeway Crash
CALABASAS (CBSLA.com) — Loved ones are in grief in the wake of a chain-reaction car crash that claimed the life of a Calabasas mother of three.
"My mom was loved by so many people," Thania Fuentes told CBS2/KCAL9's Peter Daut.
Claudia Mejia, 40, was on her way Wednesday to pick her daughter up from Calabasas High School, her family said.
She was headed southbound on the 101 Freeway in Woodland Hills when a 76-year-old driver suddenly collided into her car. The impact caused a chain reaction involving four other cars.
Two drivers were hurt and Mejia died at the scene, near the off-ramp at Valley Circle Boulevard.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation.
Mejia, originally from Guatemala, was a leasing manager at an apartment complex in Calabasas.
"It's just so hard to believe that she's not coming back home anymore," her daughter said.
Mejia's husband of 20 years, Gerber Fuentes, says he must now raise their three children on his own: "Even though she passed away, she's still in my heart. She's going to be in my heart for all my life."
Her daughter said, "My mom was an amazing person. She was my angel, and she still is."
Friends have launched an online fundraiser for Mejia's family in the wake of the tragedy.
Mejia's family says her funeral is set for Wednesday.