Kids who lost mother in cave collapse, lose father in shooting weeks later
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. -- Four children of a woman who was killed when an ice cave collapsed in Washington state suffered another tragedy when their father was shot and killed in Southern California in the same week.
The children -- two girls, ages 14, 12, and two boys, 8 and 1 -- were vacationing with their mother and others on July 6 when the accident occurred at the Big Four Ice Caves.
Authorities said Anna L. Santana, 34, of Moreno Valley, Calif., died of injuries when rock and ice fell on her at the popular attraction.
Six days later, the children lost their father.
Police said Adrian Martinez Cardona, 35, of Redlands, was shot outside a San Bernardino bar Sunday night after getting into an argument.
A relative told the San Bernardino Sun that Cardona was trying to get to his children in Washington in the days before his death.
"This is just a complete tragedy and we're focusing on the children," said Brian Keith, Cardona's brother-in-law. "That's what's important, the children."
A family friend told the Riverside Press-Enterprise that Santana and Cardona were estranged at the time of their deaths.
Besides Santana, five other people were injured in the ice cave collapse. Among them were Santana's oldest child, who suffered an ankle injury, and Santana's brother, David, who had a head injury, Rachelle Randle said.
"This is a nightmare," Randle said.