ST. LOUIS (
KMOV/Gray News) – An 18-year-old woman was killed Saturday night in St. Louis when she fell from the roof of an SUV and was then struck by a fire truck, police said.
The woman was identified as 18-year-old Nyla Simmons.
Police said a Cadillac Escalade stopped at a red light around 11:20 p.m. Saturday. Simmons was reportedly dancing on top of the vehicle.
Once the vehicle began moving again, Simmons fell off. Moments later, she was hit by a fire truck that was responding to a call. Officials said the truck had its lights and sirens on.
Her parents remember their daughter as a social butterfly who loved a good time. They were at a loss for words trying to describe what happened to her.
“We aren’t ever going to be the same after this,” her dad Everett Simmons said.
Nyla Simmons’ parents said she was attending a friend’s prom send-off before the accident.
“We just wanted the best for Nyla, the incident is just tragic the way she died but, that’s what hurts the most, the way she died. Nyla was out having fun, that’s what she liked: having fun, hanging out with her friends,” her mom Letrice Simmons said.
Now, her parents are asking people to learn from her mistakes and be safe while having fun.
They say they don’t blame the friends that Nyla Simmons was with in the vehicle; they were just teens being teens, and that no one could have guessed the night would end with the 18-year-old losing her life.
“We’ve all been young before, we all have done some type of thing where it could have ended up bad for us,” her dad said. “We want all her people and her friends to take this and learn from it.”
Her mom added, “Don’t get on top of a car, ya’ll, just don’t get on top. Just be safe.”
Nyla Simmons was the youngest of five children. She graduated from Parkway North High School last year and was set to start cosmetology school at Grabber School of Hair Design on Monday.
“I’m highly distraught that I don’t get to see what she was going to become,” her dad said.
Police said the investigation is ongoing, but everyone involved stayed at the scene and cooperated with police.