Days after a fiery crash left a woman dead; one of the people who tried to help save her is coming forward with his story.
Late Monday afternoon, Neal Seifeddine was in the area of 97 Street and 160 Avenue, when he heard the crash.
“I was in a building nearby and we heard an explosion,” Seifeddine said, he was one of a few who rushed in to help.
“I ran up to the vehicle and I grabbed the windshield and ripped it off.
Seifeddine said he tried a number of times to get the woman out of the car, but he couldn’t. No one could, the woman was pronounced dead on the scene. Now, Seifeddine can’t get what he saw that day out of his mind.
“If you’re not keeping yourself busy, you find yourself, your thoughts, going right back to that image,” Seifeddine said.
Now, the restaurant owner would like to replace that mental image.
“I was part of her life, in the last chapter of her life,” Seifeddine said.
“I’ll never forget it but I want other thoughts to come in about her too…I’d love to know who she was, I’m sure she was a lovely lady.”
CTV News has learned the woman was a married mother of two, and Seifeddine doesn’t want to intrude on her grieving family, he feels for them, and hopes he can help support them.
“It becomes really personal, if you hear it on the news or see it in a movie it’s not the same as when you’re there and you feel like you know the person, that’s why I want to do this,” Seifeddine said.
“I want to provide my help or anything I can, my support for the family, in any way I can.”
He owns O2s Taphouse and Grill, and would like to offer meals to the family. He would also like to plan a fundraiser to support them.
Charges laid against other driver in collision
Edmonton police said Thursday that charges had been laid against a driver involved in a fiery collision that left one woman dead Monday afternoon.
At about 4:30 p.m. Monday, police were called to a collision in the area of 97 Street and 160 Avenue. It was reported an SUV headed northbound on 97 Street was allegedly struck from behind by a car – as a result, the SUV caught fire and both vehicles veered into the ditch on the east side of the intersection.
The male driver of the car was treated on the scene and taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
The driver of the SUV, identified by police only as a middle-aged female, was pronounced deceased at the scene.
On Thursday, police said Eric Lestar, 20, had been charged with impaired driving causing death, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death and refusal to comply with a blood demand.
With files from Susan Amerongen
