Surviving the Parkland High School mass shooting in 2018, brothers Connor and Brandon Dietrich were among those injured in a tragic car crash in Florida over the weekend.
On Saturday around 12:40 a.m., a Toyota Camry crashed into a crowd outside Bradley’s Bar in Tampa, killing four and injuring 15, including the Dietrich brothers.
While Brandon escaped with minor injuries, Connor sustained critical injuries such as a skull fracture, a lacerated spleen, and multiple broken bones, as per a GoFundMe campaign set up by their uncle, Bill Muter.
Accompanied by their friend Riley Hancock, who also suffered critical injuries in the crash, the brothers were victims of the incident caused by alleged street racing involving 22-year-old suspect Silas Sampson.
Describing the harrowing event, their father, Bob Dietrich, mentioned how Brandon, despite being pinned against a glass wall by the vehicle, managed to free himself and assist his brother and friend.
Reflecting on Brandon’s heroic actions, Bob Dietrich shared how his son’s instinct to help others was shaped during the Parkland shooting where they were trapped in a classroom six years ago.
While Brandon coped well with the aftermath of the crash, Connor’s road to recovery is deemed long, uncertain, and challenging, according to Muter.
As the family awaits MRI results to assess the extent of Connor’s brain injuries, Bob Dietrich expressed concerns about his son’s recovery.
Following the crash, Sampson was arrested at the scene and now faces multiple felony charges, including vehicular homicide and reckless driving causing serious bodily injury, as reported by WTSP.
Scheduled for a pretrial detention hearing, the suspect is set to appear in court on Thursday morning to address the charges.
