A 14-year-old girl and her two older brothers were killed in a fiery crash Sunday night at a toll plaza on the Atlantic City Expressway.
Reachthon “Tonny” Khiev, 31, was driving east on the expressway in Hamilton Township when he struck a toll booth at the Egg Harbor plaza just after 9 p.m., according to State Police. The Honda then became fully engulfed in flames.
Video capturing the aftermath was shared on Twitter.
Khiev was killed along with two passengers: Reachsieh “Johnny” Khiev, 27, and 14-year-old Keotepie Khiev. Their 12-year-old sister was able to get out of the vehicle and was taken to the hospital.
Pasto Wil Del Valle, with permission from the family, wrote of how he came across the crash and of the brave little girl who was able to escape before the car exploded in flames.
“I won’t forget this brave 12-year old girl who got out of the car, and was desperately thinking of her family,” he wrote. “She wanted them out of the car, but she did all she could. All this to say that this girl, these people, did all they could, and it was incredibly sad.”
Both men were born in Cambodia and came to America when they were very young, their sister said. Both were in-home care providers.
“They both had a huge heart and were full of life,” Mimi Khiev wrote of her brothers. “They touched so many people’s lives and deserved so much more life than they got.”
She said they fought through every battle in their lives with smiles.
“Those who knew them know how contagious their smiles were and how they would do anything to make sure that their loved ones are taken care of,” she wrote.
They dreamed of opening a doughnut shop.
Keotepie, who was known as Keo, was the first in her family of nine born in America.
The Atlantic City High School freshman had just finished the current marking period with high honors. The ROTC member dreamed of studying abroad in Paris.
Tonny and Johnny were the family’s only financial support. A GoFundMe quickly surpassed its $20,000 goal. Mimi Khiev said any money beyond that will be used to fulfill her brothers’ dream of moving the entire family to New Hampshire so they call be together.
The eastbound lanes of the expressway were closed for about seven hours.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
