Highland community honors teen, cousins, great-grandpa killed in car crash

HIGHLAND, Calif. (KABC) -- Photos of four Highland family members who died in a fiery car crash were surrounded by love and support from dozens of people during a vigil Thursday night.

The crowd gathered at the intersection where the deadly crash happened. The victims were siblings Vanessa and Aiden Hermosillo, their great-grandfather Juan Perez and their cousin Nicholas Luna.

They were Blanca Muniz' father, grandchildren and nephew.

"It's very comforting to know that people care and that people are so generous. I want to thank everybody for their donations," she said.

Surveillance video from the scene showed the crash as Perez' Ford Taurus then flipped and caught fire. Nicholas was pulled from the vehicle, but later died from the burns he suffered. He had picked up his cousins and was taking them to his great-grandfather's home.

Friends said Vanessa was kind and her brother Aiden liked playing football.

Their big brother Josh is now the only child his mother has left. A year ago, she lost her oldest son in a car accident.

"Aiden was a polite, good little kid and Josh is a great kid. He's being strong through this whole situation. His teammates, myself, we're here for him and the family," family friend Susie Flores said.

The city of Highland plans to install a traffic light at the intersection in 2018, but it's a move that comes too late for this family.

"I would want the city to take action and put a signal light in this intersection so that no other family would ever have to go through this," Muniz said.

GoFundMe pages were set up to pay for the funeral expenses for the siblings, great-grandfather and Luna.

A car wash will also be held on Saturday in the city to raise additional funds.