CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. — Queenie Roux traveled to Atlanta from Sebring, Florida Tuesday with five of her six children for a fresh start. Her family said she left her job at McDonald's and dreamt of starting over.
That dream was cut short. Family members said the 28-year-old mother of six and her 3-year-old died Wednesday in a car crash on Interstate 75 in Clayton County, near Forest Parkway at exit 237.
The roadway was closed after the crash and drivers were told to avoid the area. Now, traffic is moving again, but for a family 11Alive spoke to, the world has completely stopped.
"I just, I can't grasp it," said Shontanique Roux, one of Queenie's cousins. "It hurts, it hurts so bad. You just don't think this kind of stuff is going to happen."
She spoke exclusively to 11Alive on Wednesday night.
Queenie had six kids total: four boys and two girls. Her family said five of those kids (ages 9, 7, 4, 3, 2 - according to the family) were in the car during the accident.
The 3-year-old girl who died was named Queen, after her mom.
"I was telling her I'll be there at the end of July and I'll come see her because I have to drive that way," Shontanique said. "The next time I see her, it won't be her. The next time I'll see that baby, it's just not going to be the same. We talked all the time."
Shontanique said that since the family lives miles away in Florida, many of them found out through social media.
The family is now trying to find a way to take Queenie's body and the 3-year-old's back to Florida, along with the four other kids who are still in Georgia.
"She has these kids and its basically all she really has, so it's really sad," she added.
A family member is currently on her way to Atlanta. She said the other four kids who were in the vehicle are at a nearby hospital and adds that officials can't give her detailed updates on their condition until she arrives.
The family has set up a fundraising page to help with burial costs.