The four girls who were killed Monday in a crash at a school camp program in Illinois have been identified by the county coroner’s office.
Sangamon County Coroner Jim Allmon released the names of all victims in a press release Tuesday, identifying them as Rylee Britton, 18; Ainsley Johnson, 8; Alma Buhnerkempe, 7; and Kathryn Corley, 7. They were pronounced dead at the scene, according to the coroner’s office.
Alma’s mother, Billie Buhnerkempe, told NBC News that her daughter was a “ray of sunshine wherever she went.”
Alma Buhnerkempe.Courtesy Billie Buhnerkempe
“She was sweet, outgoing, silly and funny,” Buhnerkempe said. “She loved her friends and family fiercely. She loved playing soccer, basketball and doing gymnastics.”
Alma’s younger brother Will has autism, Buhnerkempe added. Alma “loved and supported him the way only a big sister could,” her mother said.
Ainsley’s father, Todd Johnson, declined to be interviewed but confirmed her death to NBC News on Tuesday. Her nickname, he said, was “Squirt.”
“She was larger than life and will forever leave a void in our broken hearts,” Johnson said.
Ainsley Grace Johnson.Courtesy Todd Johnson
Family members for Kathryn and Rylee did not immediately respond to requests for comment from NBC News.
Six others were taken to Hospital Sisters Health System, five of whom were admitted into the children’s hospital. One person was treated and released, the hospital said.
Illinois State Police said that a vehicle drove into the building at YNOT After School Camp around 3:20 p.m. in the town of Chatham on Monday. The cause of the crash is under investigation.
Authorities identified the driver as 44-year-old Chatham resident Marianne Akers. State police reported that Akers, who is not in custody, was subjected to toxicology tests and the results are pending.
YNOT Outdoors Founder Jamie Loftus described the crash as an “unforetold tragedy” in a statement on Tuesday. Security cameras showed an SUV traveling at a “high rate of speed” through a field toward the building with “no apparent attempt to alter its direction,” according to Loftus.
Loftus urged people to keep the families of the victims in their thoughts and prayers, while also giving them “space and respect”
“I cannot gather the words to express much of anything that will make sense in print,” Loftus said. “However, I do know that our families who suffered loss and injury today, are hurting very, very badly. They are friends and their kids are like our kids.”
Irene Byon
