"It's my family. My wife was laying there on the ground. (By) the look of the car, I don't know how either of them lived," Van Riper said. "There was nothing left of that car."

Van Riper’s wife, Amber, and son, Jonathan, were airlifted to the hospital, and his wife endured 9 hours of surgery to repair a broken pelvis. Both are expected to recover.

The car carrying Amber and her son collided with an oncoming pickup truck. The accident is still under investigation.

The family does not have insurance, KTRK reported, and friends have created a GoFundMe account to help pay their expenses.

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University of Georgia students are seen entering and leaving the main Library on the Athens campus on Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Miguel Martinez/AJC)

Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez