Family remembers 14-year-old hit and killed on his bicycle

HASTINGS, Fla. – Family of 14-year-old Xavier Santana shared stories and photos of the St. Johns County teen who died aft his motorcycle was deed by a passing operator Sunday night.

Xavier Santana’s older brother, Daniel Santana, acceptable up a GoFundMe account for the family.

“It truly hurt, we’re conscionable talking astir outpouring break,” Daniel Santana said. “It truly wounded maine due to the fact that we were truthful close. I conscionable talked him that aforesaid time astatine 3:40 and that happened astatine 6.”

Daniel Santana describes his small member arsenic a caring, hard-working teen, with a steadfast consciousness of humor.

“He was a comic idiosyncratic , helium for definite boosted up the room,” Daniel Santana said.

Stephanie and James Cheely were driving down County Road 13, adjacent Hastings, erstwhile they noticed a firetruck with exigency lights and sirens, heading to the country of the crash.

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“I conscionable started crying because, I mean, I couldn’t imagine, was conscionable really, truly sad,” Stephanie Cheely said.

James Cheely said, “A antheral lasting retired determination told america to crook astir that a lad had been killed connected the bicycle and they’d astir apt beryllium closing the roadworthy disconnected astatine the moment.”

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, the pick-up motortruck deed the 14-year-old connected a bicycle, and the teen died connected impact.

Stephanie Cheely said that adjacent though she didn’t cognize the teen, she’s heartbroken.

“I was putting myself successful the parents’ shoes, and I was, like, oh, my gosh, like, I don’t cognize however I would react, you know, if my kid was deed and conscionable died similar that,” she said. “It’s horrible.”

Xavier Santana’s motorcycle was not outfitted with lights, and the clang happened much than an hr aft sunset.

Stephanie Cheely said the deadly clang is serving arsenic a reminder to talk with her ain kids astir information connected the road.

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“Kind of explicate to them you know, this tin hap you know, marque definite that you’re wearing magnitude covering and wear, you know, a helmet and lights and everything that you need,” Stephanie Cheely said.

There is simply a instrumentality successful Florida that anyone riding a bicycle aft sunset and earlier sunrise has to person beforehand and backlights, disposable from 500 feet and 600 feet respectively.

Xavier Santana was not wearing a helmet, which is instrumentality for anyone nether the property of 16 connected a bicycle.

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