SC boy, 5, dies after falling from moving family car
Axel Garcia was going to play with his cousin at his grandma’s — a typical afternoon for the 5-year-old and his family.
Along the way, somehow Axel’s car door opened. He tumbled out and was run over.
He died at the scene.
How it happened has not been released by officials yet. Did he open the door himself? Was he run over by his family’s 2020 Chevy Malibu driven by his mother or by the car following behind? Could he have died from the fall?
Anna Cedeno, his aunt, said on a gofundme page that Axel opened the door.
“My sister and her husband are completely distraught and the last thing they want to do is plan a funeral for their son,” she said.
The incident occurred on Saluda Dam Road in Easley.
WYFF News 4 reported that neighbors said a woman got out of the car and began CPR on him after it happened.
Community activist Traci Fant said on Facebook, “The driver of the vehicle said they were all laughing and singing when all of sudden Axel started screaming. When she turned around, the back door was open and Axel had fallen out.”
Fant said Axel would have been 6 years old on June 30.
The South Carolina Highway Patrol, which is investigating, did not respond to a request for additional information. Pickens County Coroner Kandy Kelley could not be reached for comment..
