Young mom, rig driver killed in NW Harris County collision

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A horrific car wreck in northwest Harris County Friday afternoon left four young children without a mother and pinned the driver of an 18-wheeler under a trailer, killing him.

The accident happened on the westbound frontage roads of the North Sam Houston Tollway and Antoine.

Rodney Sanders identified the female victim as his sister, Ashley McGaha. He tells us she and her boyfriend were on the way to pick their children up from school when an 18-wheeler blew through a red light and took her life instantly.

"That was my baby. My baby," Sanders says.

He tells us the kids' school called their mother late Friday afternoon.

"They hadn't picked up the kids yet. And obviously this is why," Sanders said.

The family knew something was wrong.

"My mom called me. We saw the crash on the news. The car looked like the car. I came down here myself. I didn't want my mom to come down here," Sanders said.

Investigators say the big rig was traveling westbound on the Beltway feeder. Witnesses told them the driver ran the red light and slammed into the car McGaha was in with her boyfriend and their five-month-old son as they were turning from Antoine.

According to those witnesses, the light had been red for several seconds when he ran it.

"I'm being told the 18 wheeler was traveling probably at the speed limit or a little better," says Sgt. Stewart Wolverton. " The speed limit is 50 miles per hour."

Sgt. Wolverton tells us the truck driver was ejected. The cargo container flipped over and fell on top of him.

"So the driver of the truck was pinned underneath that cargo. He was also pronounced dead here on the scene," he said.

Authorities have not released his identity. No word about what caused him to run the light.

Two people survived. Ashley McGaha's boyfriend was taken by LifeFlight to Memorial Hermann Hospital in critical condition. Miraculously, their little boy suffered minor injuries. He's left, along with three siblings, without a mother.

"She was a loving person. She never really got into it with anybody," Sanders explained. "She was just trying to take care of her kids and live life the right way."

All westbound lanes of the Beltway at Antoine are still shut down as the investigation into the deadly accident continues.

Meanwhile, the family says will need help paying for her funeral.