Arizona girl who survived fall into pool remembered following deadly crash

PHOENIX - A four-year-old girl who miraculously survived after falling into a pool years ago died this past week in front of her home.

The mother of Mia Preston, Alia, Preston, says it was just a terrible accident. She says Mia was an outgoing girl who made an enormous impact.

"It's just incredible that she was just so little, and was able to have such an impact on people," Alia says, in a phone interview.

Alia says her four-year-old girl was playing with siblings outside when a truck came by. Alia says the driver stopped and did everything right, but tragedy still struck.

"She was at that moment – maybe she thought the truck stopped, she was gonna start to go across the street – we’re not sure. She’s so tiny that when he started to go, to proceed to drive, he hit her and then ended up running her over," Alia says. "He wasn’t speeding or on a cell phone or anything. It was purely, like, 100% an accident."

As mentioned above, Mia survived a fall into the pool years ago. She was brought back to life with CPR performed by her father, and made a full recovery before the crash. Mia even had the courage to learn how to swim.

"Even recently, I would get messages from people thanking me for sharing her story and watching her swim," Alia says. "They put their children in swim lessons and ISR, and we know that she saved lives from her miracle."

Alia says Mia’s survival story inspired many.

"There are sometimes people who are just too good to be here for too long, but she had a mission for just the four years, her life, to bring people together, to love each other, and to be reminded of how short life can be."

A celebration of life for Mia is set to take place at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 2. The community is welcome to attend.