Three young girls saw reckless driver kill dad in car crash...now their mother has stage four breast cancer
Andrew Cristillo, 35, tragically died on August 3 after his car was allegedly hit head-on by Jaiwin Kirubananthan, 18, in Ontario, Canada.
Andrew was driving back from a family gathering around 9.30pm with his wife Christina and their three daughters, Leah, seven, Chloe, six and Ella, four.
The loving father and husband died instantly while Christina rushed to rescue their children, who were left crying in the back seat.
As she did so, Kirubananthan fled the scene. He was located soon after and taken into custody, according to the Ontario Provincial Police.
Kirubananthan has been charged with dangerous driving causing death, three counts of dangerous driving causing bodily harm, failing to remain at the scene of an accident resulting in death, and public mischief, according to court documents reviewed by City News Toronto.
Christina, who has been fighting stage four cancer, is now the sole provider and caregiver for their daughters.
Their family has banded together to be there for the now-single mother who is watching over their girls after they were left with injuries following the car wreck.
'This is something you read about and to have it happen to you is a nightmare. It doesn't even feel real,' Jordan Cristillo, Andrew's younger brother, told the outlet.
'The girls have been taking it day by day. One of the difficult parts of this is although my brother has been killed, we can't process that because we are so focused on making sure the girls are okay.'
Along with her health battle, Christina was also left injured from the car accident.
'She is the strongest person I've ever met and can only imagine the complete selflessness to ensure those three girls are cared for,' Jordan said of his sister-in-law.
The grieving brother is determined to get justice for Andrew while his wife and children recover from the unimaginable.
'How can you flee when you hear three little girls crying for help, crying for daddy who is not able to respond, crying for mommy who's kicking out the windshield to get out to pull her daughters out of this wreckage,' he said of Kirubananthan.
'This wasn't an accident. This was complete and utter negligence and recklessness. Justice means that this doesn't happen to other families, they don't need to experience this unbearable pain and loss.'
Christina echoed Jordan's stance, as the widow called for justice for her heartbroken family.
'This tragedy was not just an accident — it's the result of someone else's reckless actions. The other driver fled the scene and is under criminal investigation,' she wrote on a GoFundMe page.
'While justice is being pursued, our focus now is survival physically, emotionally, and financially.'
Andrew's wife and brother have remembered him as a loving person who was devoted to his family.
'My brother was the funniest person I ever met. He really pursued everything with 110 percent,' Jordan recalled.
'Various interest and he would always jump in with both feet and he loved to share his passion with others. He was always there for people too.'
Christina called Andrew her 'best friend and the love of my life.'
'Andrew had a wicked sense of humor and a way of lighting up every room he walked into — the life of the party, the friend everyone wanted by their side, the one who could make you smile even on your worst day,' she said.
'His greatest wish was for his family to be safe, happy, and cared for, and he worked tirelessly to give our daughters the best life and future he possibly could.'
As of Tuesday morning, more than $351,400 CAD ($255,090 USD), has been raised for the family during this difficult time.
Andrew worked as a site supervisor at Pro Caissons Ltd., a drilling contractor in the area.
Jordan said he believes his late brother 'is the reason why those three girls and Christina are able to live to see another day, it's because he saved them.'
This was not the first time Kirubananthan was involved in a car crash, as he collided with a Ontario Provincial Police vehicle carrying Premier Doug Ford in January.
Ford and other occupants in the vehicle were left unharmed.
Kirubananthan was charged with dangerous operation of a motor vehicle in connection to that crash, per court records obtained by City News Toronto.
He appeared at a bail hearing on Monday morning for the recent crash, CTV News reported.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Influencer couple 'lost control' and rolled 'many, many times' downhill before tragic death in off-road accident
An influencer couple who died in an off-roading horror crash rolled 'many, many times' as they plunged more than 650 feet down a rocky mountain in Canada. Stacey Tourout and Matthew Yeomans, the pair behind the Toyota World Runners YouTube channel, died on the evening of August 7 in the mountainous area near Trout Lake in British Columbia. The pair garnered more than 200,000 subscribers and more than 72,000 Instagram followers by documenting their explorations through North and South America. They were no strangers to off-roading - making their death even harder to swallow for their loyal fanbase and tight-knit all-terrain community. Rescuers have revealed the harrowing circumstances of their fatal accident. The engaged couple was traveling along a forestry road 'somewhere in the mountains' near Trout Lake, Mark Jennings-Bates, a manager of the Kaslo Search and Rescue (SAR) team that found them, told CBC. Once rescuers arrived on site, responding to reports called in about the accident, one of the victims was already dead. The other was in a critical state, 'disoriented and suffering from serious injuries,' Jennings-Bate said. That individual later died at the hospital. It is unclear if it was Tourout or Yeomans who died at the scene. While the official cause of the crash has not yet been confirmed, investigators believe they likely lost control of the vehicle - causing them to plummet down a mountain. Jennings-Bates estimated they fell about 200 meters - 656 feet - downhill until they slammed into the bottom. They likely rolled 'many, many times' during the terrifying ordeal. He also described the rescue operation as 'challenging' because it was a long uphill journey to get to them, although he said his team did so 'efficiently.' He also noted his team has responded to the many calls in the area where they died, as it is difficult to navigate and rugged. Stacey's mother confirmed the couple's death in a heartbreaking social media post. She wrote they died together in an off-road accident 'in the beautiful mountains of British Columbia that they loved so much.' 'Please keep us and them in your thoughts and prayers as we navigate this devastating end to an amazing Love Story,' Colleen Tourout wrote. In light of the devastating loss to their loved ones and the international online community they have built, social media has been flooded with heartfelt tributes, remembering the ambitious duo. 'They were so young and full of life, so talented, and this is a huge loss for our off-road community, their friends and family, and the world,' the creator behind The Story Till Now YouTube channel, Shaun, wrote. He explained that while he never met them in person, he often spoke with Matthew on the phone. Shaun revealed that the last time he had spoken to Matthew was the day before he and his fiancée died. Shaun's jeep broke down, and he was 'trying to figure out how to get it home.' 'We joked about how we would have finally met up the next day if not for my Jeep breaking down, but talked about getting some firm plans on the books for a trip next month. 'They tragically passed away that very next day in an accident, and I'm just devastated over it.' Another off-roading creator, Colin Stuart who runs the Dirt Theory channel, said he was with the couple when the horror unfolded. 'I was with them when it happened and did everything in my power to save them,' he wrote on Facebook. 'Those were the hardest 20 hours I have ever lived. The hardest decisions I have ever had to make. 'I'm sorry to all that this has affected. This is a big loss for the offroad community and a bigger loss to Matthew's and Stacey's family and close friends.' In a tear-jerking obituary written for the couple, they were described as the 'heart and soul' of the off-roading community. Amid this harrowing tragedy, Jennings-Bates has warned people to proceed with caution when it comes to off-roading. Stacey and Mathew's claim to fame was building the 'world's first Land Cruiser Chinook in 100 days,' according to their YouTube bio. The custom vehicle combines the body of a Toyota Chinook camper and a Toyota Land Cruiser to essentially create a camper suitable for off-roading. It is unclear if they were driving the Land Cruiser when the fatal crash occurred. Along with their cruiser adventures, they also documented their many RV retrofits, often combining parts of different vehicles to make them suitable for off-roading. They uploaded their very last YouTube video on July 31, just about a week before they died. In the nearly hour-long segment, the pair documented their off-roading trip across Vancouver Island.
The Guardian
2 hours ago
- The Guardian
Father of New Zealand woman held in US by Ice along with six-year-old son voices hope for release
The father of a New Zealand woman who has been held in a US immigration detention centre for three weeks with her six-year-old son is hopeful the pair will be released by the end of the week. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) detained Sarah Shaw and her youngest son after they attempted to re-enter the US from Canada on 24 July. Shaw had just dropped her two eldest children at Vancouver airport, so they could take a direct flight back to New Zealand for a holiday with their grandparents, when her father, Rod Price, received a panicked phone call. 'She went to go back across into the US and then I got a frantic call to say that she's being detained and 'they're about to take my phone off me' and 'they're locking me up for the night',' Price told local broadcaster RNZ. On Thursday, her friend Victoria Besancon told the Guardian that Shaw had received documents indicating she would be released, but the immigration centre was yet to verify the details to Shaw's lawyer. Price was feeling confident and said there was a '90% chance' Shaw would be released on Friday afternoon, New Zealand time. Ice confiscated Shaw's phone and transported her and her son to a Dilley immigration processing centre in south Texas, many states away from her home in Washington state, Besancon said on Wednesday. The ordeal had been 'horrible', Besancon said. 'It really is kind of like being in jail ... it has been absolutely devastating and it's kind of barbaric.' Shaw has what is known as a 'combo card'– a temporary immigration document that includes employment authorisation, which she obtained through her employment at a maximum-security juvenile facility, and an I-360 approval, which can grant immigration status to domestic violence survivors. Shaw, who has lived in Washington for more than three years, had recently received a letter confirming her 'combo card' renewal, not realising that the I-360 element of her visa was still pending approval. Shaw's lawyer, Minda Thorward, told local media in Seattle that it was a simple administrative error and border patrol had the discretion to parole her into the US. Her children, meanwhile, had the correct travel documents to enter the US. 'There was absolutely no reason for [her son] to be detained. It's unconscionable,' Thorward said. New Zealand's foreign affairs ministry said it was in contact with Shaw but could not comment further on the case due to privacy issues. The Guardian has contacted Ice and the US embassy in New Zealand for comment. Shaw's case is the latest in a growing list of foreigners facing interrogation, detainment and deportations at the US border, including a British tourist, three Germans Lucas Sielaff, Fabian Schmidt and Jessica Brösche, and a Canadian and an Australian who were each held and then deported, despite having valid work visas.
Times
4 hours ago
- Times
Mother killed by falling tree branch in front of her children
A mother was killed in front of her two young children when a tree branch fell on her in a park in Lancashire. The woman, named locally as Madia Kauser, 32, was struck while walking in Witton Country Park in Blackburn on Monday evening. Blackburn with Darwen council, which owns the 480-acre park, has since felled the beech tree from which the branch fell. Kauser was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics. Several of her relatives arrived shortly after. One tributes on social media described her as a 'lovely person', and another said: 'I honestly can't even believe what I read.' The Muslim community in the town is believed to be holding prayers for Kauser and offering its condolences to her young children. Fahid Abbas, a funeral director, announced her death, writing: 'It is with a heavy heart to inform you that Madia Kauser, beloved daughter, beloved sister and beloved wife sadly departed from this temporary abode, of Blackburn.' The Facebook group Blackburn Muslim posted a notice of condolences saying: 'Please keep this mother and her young children in your prayers.' The council said: 'Blackburn with Darwen borough council is deeply saddened to confirm that a member of the public has tragically died following an incident in Witton Park, when a large tree branch fell.' Denise Park, chief executive of the council, said: 'Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with the family and friends of the person who has lost their life at this very difficult time.' She added that the council had cordoned off the area for public safety, and the tree was felled as 'part of precautionary safety measures'. Lancashire police said that the woman's death was not being treated as suspicious and a file would be prepared for the coroner. Paul Marrow, a local councillor, said there should be regular inspections of trees in the park, adding that there had been 'concerns about ash dieback disease and the number of dead trees in Witton Park and across the borough'.
