At 8:30am, there was traffic as usual at the intersection of West Fuqua and Fondren. Pamela Thomas was stopped at the light when she heard a crash.
"All I saw was the van flipped over twice," she recalled.
The van was a Ford Freestyle, struck as the driver was turning on a green light from Fondren to Fuqua. It was hit by a red Acura sedan. A police spokesman said the car's driver admitted that he ran a red light and was speeding.
But the aftermath of the crash is the stuff of nightmares. A one-year-old baby, a 12-year-old girl and a teenage boy were all in the van. The van's driver had been ejected through the windshield. The vehicle landed on top of her.
Thomas said, "When I parked my car to run to the site, ... they were already moving the van, shaking the van, back and forth, rocking the van, trying to help."
The young people made it out of the accident, with cuts and bruises, according to Thomas. The one-year-old was still inside the van.
"I just began to grab hold of the baby," Thomas said. "We put pressure on the baby's head, applied pressure, because she had lacerations to her head."
The older children sat on the ground, in shock, she says. Thomas then turned her attention to the driver. Markita Bailey, 28, was said to be a wife and new mother. She lay on the street, unconscious.
Thomas said, "At that point, I just really wanted to hold her and just say, 'Just hold on.' I mean, that's all we can do at that point, is just say hold on."
Flowers were left Monday afternoon in a memorial tribute to Bailey, who passed away at the hospital. The driver of the car is also hospitalized. The investigation continues.
