Police ask for public’s help in Fort Worth crash investigation – NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

Horrifying new details have emerged in Sunday’s fatal crash along Highway 820 in northwest Fort Worth.

The police say there was a major collision killed a family of four in a wrong-way car and a bride-to-be in a pickup truck.

Chelsea Cook, 33, died at the scene.

Laurel Summerfield says her daughter and her fiancé, Evan, were about a mile from the exit when a wrong-way driver hit them just after 3:30 Sunday morning.

Evan, she said, is a musician in several bands and performed at the annual Halloween show.

NBC 5 also spoke with a woman who says she narrowly avoided being hit by a speeding driver.

“They were going straight and they were going over 80 miles, they were definitely going over 80 miles,” said Valerie, who asked NBC 5 not to use her last name. “It was just a shock to us because it literally would have been us, for one second, if we hadn’t swerved. It makes us feel guilty again because someone else died. The whole family that was in the car died, but someone else was killed.”

Valerie says she called 911 at 3:30 a.m., but it all happened so fast.

They turned around trying to get more information about the driver when they saw flames.

A driver carrying a family of four crashed into a pickup truck, killing the passenger and seriously injuring her fiance, according to FWPD.

Summerfield, Cook’s mother, shared the photos with NBC 5 and says Evan just popped the question three weeks ago at the Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque.

The couple had just returned the sound equipment to the rehearsal space and were about 1.5 miles from their front door.

Summerfield was “shocked” to learn that a mother, father and two juveniles were in the wrong-way car.

Unfortunately, the car caught fire during the collision and the family was trapped.

“We don’t know if the toxicology results are back or if we can even get them,” said FWPD Officer Tracy Carter.

The dire consequences can make it difficult, if not impossible.

The operatives also tried to establish the identities of the people who were in the car, where they were coming from and how and why they managed to enter the freeway in the wrong direction.

“We don’t know if these were people who didn’t know exactly where they were going or exactly what happened,” Carter said.

He’s urging anyone who knows the family to come forward: “If they’ve been with this family, if they know of the family’s whereabouts, please contact us (at 817-392-4884).”

The police express their condolences to the witnesses and families affected by the tragedy, including those who quickly arrived at the scene.

Whatever caused the driver to go the wrong way, Carter is confident that “it could have been prevented.”

Police urge drivers to pay attention to signs and use alternate routes if you get lost.

When asked to describe her daughter, Summerfield said, “She was the most outgoing, sweet person. She received her pension for finding and supporting people who were struggling, socially or insecure. She always wanted to help the underdog. She loved her dogs. She was a theatrical and creative child.

Cook is the second of her four children.

She worked for a small travel company that plans exclusive trips to Africa. Her colleagues are preparing to launch an online fundraiser.

Summerfield says that Evan’s bandmates rushed to see him at the hospital over the weekend, and that those close to Evan were told that Chelsea was gone.