Father, son hit and killed while trying to gas up car on Loop 202
Father, son killed while trying to gas up car
A Phoenix family is mourning the loss of a father and son who were killed on the side of the highway near the Loop 202 and Elliot Road. Authorities say they were filling a family vehicle with gas when they were hit by a passing car. FOX 10's Nicole Krasean reports.
PHOENIX - The Tabaha family should be celebrating the 77th birthday of its patriarch, Albert Sr., this week. Instead, they are planning his burial, along with the funeral of his son Calbert.
Through their pain, the grieving family members want to get across a message – slow down and pay attention while out on the road.
"We're a tight-knit family. Now this Christmas, there's gonna be two less," said Delbert Tabaha.
Delbert says if his brother Calbert were here today, he'd be glued to the TV watching NFL matchups.
"This year, it was the Cowboys. Last year, it was the Titans. The year before that, it was the Ravens, so he would jump from one team to another," he explained.
But Calbert knew the most important team is the one you are born into, and he doted on his nieces and nephews.
"He'd always make time, like when they'd come over, he'd be like 'let's get something to eat' for the whole family or birthdays. He goes 'here some money' and he would buy bouncy castles when they were little, bouncy castles and stuff like that,"
"He took me to a baseball game before, it was pretty fun," said Calbert's niece.
The head of the family, Albert Sr., gave his sons and grandchildren a role model they cherished.
"He always told us, you know what, the man upstairs and if you have good family, you're rich. It doesn't matter, money, it means nothing," said Delbert.
But on Friday evening, the three men were on the shoulder of the 202 gassing up a vehicle when a Tesla hit Albert and Calbert.
Father and son dead after being hit by a car on the shoulder of Loop 202 in Phoenix
A father and son are dead after they were struck by a car at an on-ramp on Loop 202 in Phoenix.
Delbert's next few minutes came with devastating discoveries – first as he checked his brother.
"Down deep, I knew he was gone, but I had to check, and I did, and he was already, no response, no nothing," he said.
And then his father…
"I kind of nudged him, like 'dad, dad, wake up', I thought he got knocked out or something, and then I tried calling his name, nothing, so I went like this on his neck, and yeah he was already gone, too," said Delbert.
Delbert says all three men had taken safety precautions.
"I was waving this light like this so they could see it. It's a bright LED, so I was going like this, and I had the strobe lights and stuff like this, this one blinking and that one blinking like this on top of my van and my brother's truck had hazard lights on, too," he said.
Albert Sr. and Calbert Tabaha (Photo courtesy Tabaha family)
Delbert wants drivers to educate themselves on the state's move over law, which requires drivers to move over one lane or slow down when driving by a vehicle pulled over with flashing lights.
He also wants drivers to slow down on all roadways.
"You're not gonna get a trophy or anything or first prize for being there first, no. See, the person who hit my dad and my brother forever changed our lives. For what?" he said.
DPS is investigating this crash. The driver of the Tesla did stay on scene that night.
Delbert says he'd like to thank a truck driver who blocked part of the road until DPS arrived, in order to keep his dad and brothers' bodies from being hit again.
He shared that the family has plans to take them both up to the Navajo reservation where they'll be laid to rest.