The family of Shanell Smith has set up a GoFundMe account after the 42-year-old Antioch mother was killed in a wrong-way crash on Interstate Highway 680 in Walnut Creek on Friday night.
Smith was killed and seven other people were injured after a wrong-way driver collided with six vehicles at about 11:30 p.m. Friday, the California Highway Patrol said.
The crashes occurred when the wrong-way driver was traveling south in the northbound lanes just north of Treat Boulevard, CHP spokesman Officer Daniel Gilmore said Saturday.
Smith was a passenger in one of the northbound vehicles and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Four other people, including the wrong-way driver, suffered major injuries and three had minor injuries, Gilmore said.
The woman driving the wrong-way vehicle, a Dodge Charger, was taken to a hospital and allegedly later found to have been impaired at the time of the crash, the CHP said. She was placed under arrest and remained at the hospital for treatment.
Smith’s daughter Niyanna Farinacci set up the GoFundMe page to raise money for expenses following her mother’s death.
“My mom was a special kind of human, she moved through this world with a smile on her face and her head held high,” Farinacci wrote on the site. “She had a rare gift of making all those in her presence feel truly seen and loved.”
People can visit the page at www.gofundme.com/f/honoring-shanell-with-a-beautiful-farewell.
WOW such a tragedy, I can’t imagine what the family is going through RIP Shanell Smith
May she rest in peace. A life cut too short by another alleged drunk driver. May her family find peace and comfort in time.