Atwater family faces loss of 2-year-old in Christmas Eve crash

An Atwater couple braced to drive back home Monday after an accident on an icy mountain road claimed the life of their 2-year-old daughter on Christmas Eve, relatives said.

Raymond and Kelly Dean were traveling to visit family in the Plumas County community of Quincy when their GMC Yukon crossed into oncoming traffic and collided with a truck before plunging off the side of State Route 70, according to a report from the California Highway Patrol.

Raymond Dean’s mother, Maricella Williams, told the Sun-Star they believe the Yukon hit a patch of ice, causing Raymond to lose control in the accident, reported at 12:22 p.m. on Saturday.

The Yukon overturned and rolled down a steep embankment, according to the CHP, which said the crash remained under investigation.

Raymond Dean, 29, was treated for a broken collarbone and other injuries, Williams said, and the family plans to seek further medical care in Modesto. Kelly Dean, 32, suffered a broken ankle and was “pretty banged up” in the accident, Williams said. The couple’s 4-year-old son survived unscathed, she said.

Their 2-year-old daughter, Arizona, was ejected from the vehicle, she said. After the crash, the couple searched for the girl and “found her in the snow,” Williams said. “They stayed with her and kept her warm.”

The girl suffered major injuries and was later pronounced dead, the CHP said.

On Monday morning, the couple were with family in Quincy, about 50 miles from Chico across the Plumas National Forest, and were preparing to meet with Williams in Sacramento.

“They’re petrified to go down the mountain,” Williams said. “They don’t want to get in the car.”

The couple are distraught over the loss of their daughter, Williams said.

“They’re still devastated, and there’s a lot more to come as far as coping with this,” she said.

“They just cannot believe that Arizona has passed. … They are very heartbroken, as we all are.”

Williams said Monday that the couple’s son has been asking for his sister, whom he calls “Nona.”

“They’re having a hard time because he keeps talking about her, saying ‘Oh, I’m going to play this game with Nona, and I’m going to give Nona this teddy bear,’” she said.

The Deans and their children were with Williams and other family members in Riverbank on Dec. 23, she said. “We were all together celebrating.” They were on their way to Quincy to visit Kelly Dean’s father and were only a few miles away when the accident occurred on State Route 70, east of the Spanish Creek Bridge.

The driver of the 2011 International box truck that collided with the Deans’ Yukon, a 38-year-old man from Greenville, suffered minor injuries, the CHP reported.

Kelly Dean is a stay-at-home mother and Raymond Dean was in the process of changing professions to become a truck driver, Williams said. The family has no insurance and the cash Raymond Dean recently earned from his salary was lost in the crash, along with all of the possessions they were carrying on their trip to Quincy, Williams said.

“That’s all replaceable. A life is not replaceable,” she said.

The family has set up a GoFundMe account named “Arizona Dean Memorial Fund” to help pay for their medical and funeral costs, Williams said.

“We do have a big family, but the expenses are way beyond our imagination,” she said, adding that she was overcome with gratitude for donations that have been offered so far.

“There’s no words other than that we appreciate it. I’m full with gratitude and thankfulness,” she said. “I know they will need it.”

This story was originally published December 27, 2016 at 7:52 AM with the headline "Atwater family faces loss of 2-year-old in Christmas Eve crash."