“I’m broken hearted,”: Loved ones talk about the life of friends killed in I-77 crash in Chester County

CHESTER COUNTY, S.C. (WBTV) - The Chester County Coroner released the names of the people killed in a crash on I-77 Sunday morning that shut the interstate down for hours.

First responders tell us a pickup truck was driving the wrong way when it hit a car traveling south on the interstate. Three people inside the car were ejected, killing all three.

The three victims are Treshawn Simmons, Thomas Grant III, and Daniel Ewing III.

Previous Coverage: 4 people killed in two-vehicle crash that shut down I-77 south in Chester County

Officials tell WBTV that the driver of the pickup truck was also killed, but their name has not been released yet.

WBTV learned three of the four people killed were friends and meant the world to their families.

Stephanie Robinson, a mentor of Treshawn Simmons said, “I’m broken-hearted,” when asked about the fatal crash.

“It’s the worse time right now, it’s something you never think of happening,” said Thomas Grant Jr., the father of Thomas Grant III.

Family members and friends are in shock, nearly 48 hours since friends were killed in a head-on crash by a wrong-way driver.

Grant Jr. said, “Thomas meant everything to me, the fact that he’s my namesake, Thomas Grant III, he was a bright light for everybody.”

The Grant family says he was 19 years old with a birthday coming up soon.

His mother and father say he wanted to be a chef and made everyone around him feel good.

Grant Jr. said, “he loved cooking, he loved fashion as well, he had a lot of varied interests.”

Thomas Grant III’s mother, Tonya Grant added “a lot of people are being brought together by Thomas and he was such a wonderful person, had so many people that loved and cared about him.”

The mentor of 29-year-old Treshawn Simmons spoke about his life and what he meant to everyone.

Robinson said, “he was a brilliant young person who had my heart and was taken way too soon.”

Stephanie Robinsons said Simmons had a big heart that influenced people to be better in their life.

“Sometimes I think to myself what would Treshawn do, how would he, even though I’m the older of the two, what would he do because even when he was little, he had a sense of self, a sense of humanity if you will,” said Robinson.

The families say this was a big loss for them, seeing young men with potential taken away too soon.

“It was a great loss to his family, to my family, you know, to his community,” said Robinson.

The families tell WBTV they are pulling together with support and calls from friends and loved ones.

The name of the pickup truck driver has not been released yet by the coroner.

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