Couple rushed to aid of women, child in fatal MLK wreck; investigators continue search for answers

Reporter: Dannielle Garcia
Published: Updated:
Diana Gross, left, and her fiance, Rob Sorenson, right, rushed to the aid of the two women and child involved in the wreck when they heard screams. (WINK News)

Crash investigators worked late into the night trying to answer two basic questions: What caused the driver of a minivan to crash into a tree along Martin Luther King Boulevard right before rush hour and why was the 3-year-old girl not in a car seat?

RELATED: 3-year-old girl killed, 2 others injured in single-vehicle crash on MLK at Rockfill Rd. in Fort Myers

“We heard a woman screaming. When I went to the gate, I started running up to the accident. I look to the left on the ground; that’s when I saw the little, baby girl,” said Rob Sorensen.

He and his fiancee, Donna Gross, say they didn’t see the crash, but they heard it. Actually, what they heard was a woman’s piercing screams, and they came running.

“You never get that picture out of your head, you know,” Sorensen said.

He tried to help first responders while Gross tried to calm the woman down.

“So I just grabbed her and held her tight like this and tried to turn her so her back was to it and so she was looking this way, but she was crying and screaming the whole time. It was awful,” Gross said.

Fatal wreck on MLK Blvd. claims life of 3-year-old girl. (WINK News)

“I have a granddaughter the same age and she has the same curly hair and stuff, so it just reminded me of her,” Sorensen said. “I was just praying over her. I said, ‘Come on little girl, you gotta live.’ I just prayed to Jesus, let’s go save this little girl.”

Crash investigators believe the little girl flew out of the car on impact with the tree.

“It made me upset afterward when I heard that she didn’t have a car seat, so that made me upset,” Sorensen said.

Fort Myers police confirm the girl’s mother and another woman were in the car at the time of the crash. Charges are still pending.

FMPD is asking anyone who may have witnessed the wreck to please contact Traffic Homicide Unit Officer Daniel Aguilera at daguilera@fmpolice.com.

Tips can also be submitted on the new TRUEBLUE app that is free and available for download on the iOS App Store and Google Play Marketplace or call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-780-TIPS (8477).

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