Two children died in car accident, mother may have been distracted by siblings: DPS

An argument between siblings during a car ride resulted in death.

According to a local news agency KFVSOn Wednesday, October 23, a crash involving a mother and her three children occurred on Loop 202 in Mesa, Arizona. Their pickup truck struck a tow truck at high speed in the outside lane of the freeway, causing the westbound lanes to be closed. disconnected for several hours, according to Arizona Department of Transportation.

Bart Graves, public information officer for the Arizona Department of Public Safety, said via KFVS that the mother “may have been distracted by what was happening in the vehicle at the time of the crash.”

“My understanding is that it was children playing noisily, rowdy behavior in the back seat or something else that distracted her from the road,” he said.

The crash “severed the right side of the pickup truck, killing a 9-year-old boy and an 11-year-old girl,” DPS said in a statement, according to a local Fox affiliate. KSAZ-TV.

9-year-old Tate and 11-year-old Evie died in a car accident. Their younger brother was not injured as a result of the accident, but the children’s 36-year-old mother was hospitalized, KFVS reports.

PEOPLE contacted the Arizona Department of Public Safety and did not receive an immediate response.

Jesse Torres, director of the Arizona Governor’s Office of Highway Safety, explained this via the ABC affiliate. KNHV-TV that even the slightest glance from the road can cause drivers to skid.

“Even if you’re looking straight ahead and your peripheral is moving to the right, you have a tendency to start moving left or right. This poor woman just shifted to the right,” he said.

“And if she had skidded two seconds later, she probably would have missed that tow truck,” Torres said.

Graves also emphasized the importance of not being distracted while driving.

“Slow down, pay attention. Don’t get distracted by things in the car if you have kids,” Graves said, according to KFVS. “Don’t make phone calls. Never drive while intoxicated or tired.”

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It remains unclear whether the mother will face charges in the accident, according to KNXV.

A GoFundMe was created for Tate and Evie. “Their parents and siblings now not only have to live without their two children, but also have a mountain of medical and funeral bills just a few years after one of their children underwent long-term cancer treatment,” the fundraiser description reads. .

As of Friday, October 25, more than $145,000 had been raised.

PEOPLE has reached out to the GoFundMe organizer for comment.