DORAL, Fla. – The families of four good Samaritans who were killed while trying to help a fallen motorcyclist on Interstate 95 gathered Wednesday to warn others about the dangers of drunken driving.
Alina Ghani, 21, Randy Benjamin, 38, John Garzon, 25 and Meryl Diaz, 27, were killed Aug. 31 when they stopped to help a motorcyclist who had been injured in a crash on I-95 in Miami.
The good Samaritans were on the shoulder when they were struck and killed in a series of collisions caused by a white van.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, the driver of the van, Lionel Orrego, 42, was impaired at the time of the crash.
"Knowing that your daughter was run over by a drunk driver and that she lost her life is the hardest news a father can receive," a translator said on behalf of Vladimir Diaz, the father of Meryl Diaz.
During a special ceremony held at the regional FHP headquarters in Doral, troopers honored the lives of the four victims while reminding others about the pain caused by drunken driving.
"This holiday, if you go out there and drink and drive, look what you could cause," FHP spokesman Joe Sanchez said.
It's a lesson these families learned the hard way, but they hope others will never have to experience.
"I'm so sorry for all your losses, everyone's," Shanza Ghani, Alina Ghani's cousin, said. "They didn't deserve this."