Community members are mourning the loss of 21-year-old Franklin Suazo of San Pablo, who was identified by authorities as one of two victims killed after multiple vehicles crashed on Interstate 80 in Richmond on Sunday.
The Contra Costa County Coroner’s Office is still trying to verify the identity of the second victim, a deputy told us Tuesday.
A third victim, Suazo’s uncle, is in critical condition, according to his family.
The crash involved four vehicles, one of which CHP officers found engulfed in flames, in the westbound lanes of I-80 near Barrett Ave. Few details have been released about the cause of the crash, which remains under investigation. KRON4 reported from the scene.
In a GoFundMe fundraiser set up to support the Suazo family, loved ones say Suazo and his uncle had been driving to work when the accident occurred. Suazo leaves behind his parents and siblings and “an entire community who loved him in the soccer field and beyond,” according to the fundraiser.
Suazo was a star athlete in at Pinole Valley High,. In 2017, he earned first-team honors in the Tri County Athletic League Stone Division All-League Boys Soccer.
A candlelight vigil was planned for the community to remember Suazo tonight at Pinole Valley High.
“Words don’t explain this, and my worst fear came true. my twin my bruddaman its hard to live on without you,” wrote Suazo’s sister, Alejandra Suazo, online. “i don’t want to but i must. thank you for being my idol, the one i admire the most. thank you for showing me everything you could. thank you for being my brother. i am blessed to know everyday i woke up you were right there. now i am beyond blessed you are my angel.”
