An Idaho grandmother took an image of her three-year-old granddaughter mere seconds earlier than she was killed in a hit-and-run accident.
Samantha Jensen’s mother Jamie was babysitting younger Scarlett and her two-year-old brother Henry when the unthinkable occurred in 2022.
It is solely now, two years later, that she has felt able to share the ultimate image of her youngsters enjoying collectively earlier than Scarlett was tragically killed.
In a submit on TikTok, Samantha wrote: ‘My mother took this image at 4:47 pm and my daughter’s time of dying was 4:52. My mother did not know she was capturing the final moments of her life.
‘I appeared on the timestamp and realized it was solely 5 minutes earlier than her declared time of dying, so it will need to have been taken seconds earlier than the particular person hit them.’
Samantha Jensen posted the image on TikTok , writing: ‘My mother took this image at 4:47pm and my daughter’s time of dying was 4:52pm. She was capturing the final moments of her life.
‘Scarlett was killed nearly immediately and mother and Henry have been critically harm,’ the mother stated
‘This one is actually arduous for me to take a look at, simply figuring out what comes subsequent breaks my coronary heart.’
Jamie had solely simply returned house from taking the youngsters to get ice cream when Scarlett wished to get out of her stroller to select flowers.
‘That is when my mother took the final image I’ve of her alive.’
Whereas the little lady was busy gathering yellow and purple flowers of their personal driveway, a Chevy Tahoe got here hurtling down the dust street. It struck Scarlett, in addition to her little brother and grandmother.
Earlier than the Tahoe hit them, Jamie screamed on the driver to cease and tried to push her grandchildren out of the best way.
However the man driving the automotive was going ‘too quick.’
Whereas the little lady was busy gathering yellow and purple flowers of their personal driveway, a Chevy Tahoe got here hurtling down the dust street. It struck Scarlett, in addition to her little brother and grandmother
‘Scarlett was killed nearly immediately and my mother and Henry have been critically injured,’ Samantha recalled to Folks.
The grief-stricken mom did not understand till weeks afterwards that her mom had taken an image that documented her Scarlett’s closing moments.
‘My mother misplaced her cellphone after they have been hit and it took us some time to search out it, so after we lastly did I used to be going by the images and located that one,’ Samantha stated.
Wanting on the image was initially ‘excruciating’ for Samantha.
‘It was extraordinarily painful for me to take a look at at first. How do you come to phrases wit the existence of a “final image” of your baby?’
Scarlett was killed whereas she was gathering purple and yellow flowers
However two years later, she has come to understand the picture, discovering consolation within the tranquil scene it depicts, sharing it on her TikTok account which prompted heartwarming responses from strangers.
Samantha stated: ‘I’m so extremely grateful to have that picture. It captures the peaceable feeling of her final moments, the sweetness she was surrounded by when she took her final breaths.
‘I’ll without end image her completely happy and carefree, selecting flowers along with her greatest good friend and Meemaw.’
Following the collision, Henry needed to be life-flighted to a youngsters’s hospital the place ‘they discovered a fractured backbone, six damaged ribs, a damaged jaw, a damaged collarbone, a liver laceration and several other different accidents.’
The 2-year-old boy ‘spent per week within the PICU earlier than he was steady sufficient to return house, and he had a full physique brace on for 10 weeks,’ Samantha stated.
Ultimately, Henry and his grandmother managed to get better from their grievous accidents.
However the grieving household nonetheless grapples with emotional wounds. Born on New Years Day of 2019, Scarlett was ‘the long-awaited first baby’ of Samantha and her husband.
Scarlett beloved being an older sister and thought of her brother, Henry, her greatest good friend
Jim Patton, Scarlett’s grandfather, informed KHQ that she was ‘so vigorous, so full of affection…such a sensible little lady.’
‘A chunk of my soul is gone.’
Samantha described her daughter as ‘the silliest, sweetest little lady.’
‘She beloved horses, unicorns, being a giant sister, and the films Frozen and Spirit.
‘Absolutely the pleasure of her life have been her siblings. She beloved serving to care for child Molly and enjoying along with her greatest good friend Henry.’
With out Scarlett operating round, ‘the home feels so quiet and empty with out her.’
The household nonetheless struggles to know the actions of the motive force concerned within the incident. After initially fleeing the scene on foot, he was picked up by authorities a couple of miles away.
‘How do you try this? How do you stroll away from struggling?’ Patton requested.
Samantha described her daughter as ‘the silliest, sweetest little lady’
In line with Samantha, the motive force is now serving ten years in jail, though he obtained two years credited for the time he spent behind bars throughout the authorized proceedings.
Often, the mom finds her grief overwhelming. ‘Some days, it looks like I’m drowning, and a few days I’m able to tread water.’
Samantha stated she determined to share her emotional journey on social media in order that others may see ‘that it’s okay to grieve loudly.’
‘You do not have to do it in silence. Speak about your folks, scream their names loud and proud and by no means cease sharing their tales.’
