A lawyer for relatives of the grandmother, mother and daughter killed in a fiery crash on Highway 400 on Friday says a Good Samaritan helped surviving members of the family in the immediate moments after the collision.
Speaking for Blerta Vokshi, the daughter, sister and aunt of those killed, lawyer Sandra Zisckind said her two-year-old son Aron was stuck in his car seat in the moments after the collision when a woman approached the smoking vehicle and helped free him out of his car seat.
“(She) saved this little boy as the car caught on fire,” Zisckind said at a news conference Wednesday morning. “If anybody knows who this person is, the family would like to thank her as it likely she saved Aron’s life as well.”
Police said 35-year-old Valbona Vokshi, her five-year-old daughter Isabela Kuci, and the girl's 55-year-old grandmother Xhemile Vokshi were killed when their car became involved in a massive collision in the southbound lanes of Highway 400 near Sheppard Avenue on Friday night.
Blerta Vokshi, her two-year-old son Aron and other members of the Vokshi family were involved in the crash but were travelling in a separate vehicle.
Blerta suffered a shattered shoulder and contusions and bruises in the collision. Beyond some minor scrapes, Zisckind said Aron was unharmed.
Police say a total of 11 vehicles, including three transport trucks, were involved in the collision.
Through lawyer Jeremy Diamond, Blerta Vokshi and the rest of the family said they will wait for the outcome of an OPP investigation before taking any legal action.
Members of the Vokshi family, including Blerta’s husband and Aron’s father, Albert Sufa, were present and visibly distraught at the press conference.
Zisckind said the family was coming home from spending a day at Canada’s Wonderland in Vaughan when they became involved in the collision.
Reading a prepared statement by Blerta, Diamond said his client is reeling from the collision and trying to cope with the loss of her mother, sister and niece.
“What I am able to process is that my life will never be the same again. This is something I am still trying to accept. I cannot put into words the grief, the tears and shock that I feel.”
Speaking through lawyer Jeremy Diamond, Blerta said Xhemile Vokshi “loved this country more than anyone” she knows, and was in the process of studying for her Canadian citizenship when she was killed.
“She felt a belonging in this community.”
Blerta said her sister Valbona “always put others first,” and was “constantly sending money home to relatives in Albania, where the older members of the family are from.
“We’re asking for privacy at this time as we grieve the loss of three generations,” Blerta said in the written statement.
“I ask that you take the extra time to tell your loved ones how much you care about them today. I think about the moments I have lost, the smiles, the laughter that is no more, and I hold on tight to every moment that I had.”
Also killed in the collision was 27-year-old Maria Lipska. She recently worked at The Boulevard Club along the lakeshore in Toronto and employees there are shaken by her death.
According to Lipska's Facebook page, she recently graduated from Seneca's Travel and Tourism program.
