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Family Reacts To Fatal Crash, "I'm Still In Disbelief"

A car crash claims the life of a mother and injures her husband. The family now has the task of saying goodbye to a loved one and hoping for the recovery of another.

Posted: 8:45 PM Jan 28, 2013
Reporter: Brittany Gunter

Fatal Crash

A car crash claims the life of a mother and injures her husband. The family now has the task of saying goodbye to a loved one and hoping for the recovery of another.

Channel Six spoke with the victim’s family member, Barry Smith. “I’m just sad, very sad.” It’s a painful reality for Smith as he waits in the hospital to hear news of his brother, Harry Stanley.

Harry was critically injured in a crash early Sunday morning in Omaha. His wife Jessica Stanley was killed. Video of the scene shows the devastation, the car almost completely crushed after hitting two trees near 44th and Hamilton. “I’ve never seen a car like that and then to hear that the engine was out of the vehicle,” said Smith.

Jessica’s family is also in shock. “I feel numb, I feel empty, I’m still in disbelief,” said Joy McDaniel. McDaniel is Jessica’s Mother who lives in Des Moines. She talked to Channel Six on the phone. “She was a great daughter, sister, and mother. Her kids came first in her life.”

The couple had three kids, too young to know exactly what happened. It’s a tough situation for everyone, but the family is working to pick up the pieces. The kids are being taken care of by other family members, while Smith focuses on taking care of his brother.

“I feel kind of numb. We are not out of the dark yet, but he is my absolute favorite person in the world so I feel relieved, but I’ll feel better when we all walk out of here together,” said Smith.

Police are investigating to see whether speed and alcohol were factors in the crash.