After I-75 Tragedy Leaves Mom Dead and Young Son Hospitalized, Family Seeks Community Support

MONROE COUNTY, Ga. – A deadly crash along Interstate 75 has left one family grappling with heartbreak — and rallying for strength. On Feb. 9, the Georgia State Patrol responded to a collision on I-75 North in Monroe County that claimed the life of 47-year-old Tomiyia Jean Smith of Mt. Sterling, Ohio. According to investigators, a Volkswagen Tiguan struck the back of a flatbed trailer that was parked on the right shoulder. The truck’s driver was not inside the vehicle at the time as he was receiving roadside assistance from a worker beneath the truck. Neither were injured in the accident. Smith died at the scene and her 9-year-old son was airlifted in critical condition. He remains hospitalized, undergoing multiple surgeries.

But beyond the crash report and flashing lights, a family is now navigating a painful new reality. “My mother passed away at the scene, and my brother is now in the hospital … undergoing multiple surgeries. This has turned our world upside down,” wrote Mercedes Smith, the victim’s daughter, in an online fundraiser created to help the family cope with mounting expenses.

An active-duty military service member, Mercedes says she is working to secure stable housing, transportation and daily necessities for herself and her younger brother once he is released from the hospital. Meanwhile, her sister has remained by the boy’s side in another state, risking her employment to ensure he is not alone during his recovery.

The family now faces funeral costs, medical bills, therapy expenses and the challenge of rebuilding stability for a child whose life changed in an instant. “I don’t normally ask for help,” Mercedes wrote. “But anything given will go directly toward making my brother’s new life possible. He deserves none of this.”

Donations from the community will support funeral arrangements for their mother, as well as ongoing medical and therapy needs for the young survivor. The community can support the family by clicking on this GoFundMe link.

The crash remains under investigation.