Wrong-way crash on Highway 99 kills mother and two teenage daughters
A mother and her two teenage daughters were killed in a fiery collision on Highway 99 near Bakersfield after a wrong-way driver struck their car.
California State Highway Patrol reports that a wrong-way driver on Highway 99 north of 7th Standard Road near Bakersfield collided with a family Honda Accord just before 12:45 a.m., causing the vehicle to catch fire. Vanessa Schoettler and her daughters, Kloie and Kylie, were pronounced dead at the scene. A 44-year-old man driving a BMW 530i and his passenger were hospitalized with serious injuries, and two passengers in a Chevy Colorado suffered minor injuries.
The trio had attended a concert to celebrate Kloie's upcoming birthday. The crash left behind a brother and a son, who will turn 16 on the same day as Kloie's birthday. A GoFundMe campaign has raised about $31,000 toward funeral and family support, and investigators are asking for any information about the incident.
Why it matters
The tragedy highlights the dangers of wrong-way driving and its impact on families and communities.
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