Three Topeka girls killed in weekend car crash were headed to Girl Scout event

The Topeka three girls who died in a weekend car crash were Girls Scouts in Topeka's Daisy Troop 5567 and had been headed to a Girl Scouting event in Tonganoxie.

Laila El Azri, 9, Kylie Lunn, 9, and Brooklyn Peery, 8, were killed Saturday morning after Amber Peery, who was driving, appears to have attempted to cross the median to turn back after heading a few miles south of Topeka on I-335. Their vehicle, a 2018 Dodge van, was struck by a semi, also headed south.

The three girls were killed, while Amber Peery and other children in the car suffered varying injuries. Carrington Peery, 5, of Topeka, suffered a suspected serious injury, while Peery suffered a possible injury and Gabriella Ponomarez, 9, of Topeka, suffered a suspected minor injury, according to the Kansas Highway Patrol's post.

Peery appears to have attempted to turn around after mistakenly taking the wrong exit while taking the children to Girl Fest, a family and troop event at Camp Tongawood in Tonganoxie organized by the Girl Scouts of NE Kansas & NW Missouri. No off-ramps exist between the Topeka I-335 interchange and the Admire exit, 30 miles south on the highway.

Related:3 Topeka children died when a semi struck the van they were in on the Kansas Turnpike

In a statement, the council's CEO Joy Wheeler said the organization's hearts were broken at the deaths of the three girls, and their thoughts are with the other Girl Scouts involved in the accident.

"Girl Scouts of Northeast Kansas and Northwest Missouri grieves with the families, friends and loved ones of Brooklyn, Laila, and Kylie as together we comfort one another in the wake of this terrible tragedy," Wheeler said. "We are supporting the families and troop as they grieve and will honor the lives of our three Girl Scout sisters.”

Friends set up GoFundMe fundraisers for families' expenses

In the wake of the deaths, friends of two of the girls' families have set up online fundraisers to provide them with assistance.

Amie Sweet, a friend of Kylie's mother, wrote in a GoFundMe she set up that Kylie was an only child being raised by her best friend of more than 30 years.

"Kylie was a very loving, always smiling, nurturing soul that we all miss dearly," Sweet wrote.

Kristy Lopez, a friend of Laila's family, asked in her GoFundMe fundraiser for the community to rally around the El Azri family in its time of need.

"Laila’s precious soul was taken from us too soon and her father Rida, mother Claudette and brother need support in this very hard time," Lopez wrote.

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Rafael Garcia is an education reporter for the Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached at rgarcia@cjonline.com or by phone at ‪785-289-5325. Follow him on Twitter at @byRafaelGarcia.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Girl Scouts were headed to event when car crash killed three children