Community honors Buffalo woman killed in Philadelphia car crash

BUFFALO, NY (WIVB) – The family of a Buffalo woman who died in a car crash in Philadelphia held a vigil on the city’s east side Friday.

On June 8, 22-year-old Mariah Clemons was visiting a friend in Philadelphia. According to her family, she was involved in a minor accident with a U-Haul on westbound I-76. While they were exchanging information in the right lane of the highway, a dump truck struck the back of the U-Haul, throwing it forward.

The U-Haul struck three occupants, a man who was believed to be operating the U-Haul and a woman who was in the SUV with Clemons. According to Clemons’ family, Clemons became trapped under the U-Haul and had to be extricated with a forklift.

“They stayed there for 40 minutes before help arrived,” explained Clemons’ girlfriend, Ariel Wills, who spoke to the man involved in the accident. “She was flown to the hospital by helicopter, but her friend died in the hospital.”

Clemons suffered injuries to her pelvis, bladder, colon and thigh. She underwent several surgeries but succumbed to her injuries on July 1. Her family traveled over 300 miles and was at Clemons’ bedside at the time of her death.

“It was pretty upsetting,” said Ashley Clemons, Mariah Clemons’ sister. “The Buffalo police had to contact us instead of the Philadelphia police. So we didn’t know what was going on.”

At Friday’s vigil, family members called Clemons the light in the room and said she always had the biggest smile on her face. She was the youngest of 18 siblings and dreamed of becoming a model. Hundreds of balloons in yellow, her favorite color, were released in Clemons’ honor.

“We call her Miss Hollywood. She was our superstar,” said Ashley Clemons. “She was the youngest of us all. She was everything.”

Family members say the pain will always remain, but they want to keep Clemons’ memory alive wherever they go. They say she will always be 22.

“She loved life, Mariah loved life. That’s what everyone should remember about her,” Willis said.

Clemons’ funeral will be held on Friday, July 12th at 10 a.m. The family is collecting donations for funeral expenses. If you would like to donate, you can do so here.