A family in Fresno, California, is reeling after an Easter celebration turned into a tragedy. Martha Hernandez and her young son Adrian were both killed during a hit-and-run in the early morning hours after spending the holiday at church. As the two made their way back home, a driver that was likely intoxicated ran a red light, slamming into their vehicle. The force was so strong it plummeted Hernandez’s vehicle into a nearby canal. As the woman clung to life, her son’s body drifted away from her. He was so far away that first responders didn’t even know there was another victim. Thankfully, the other driver will face punishment.
The mother and son were separated in the crash.
Officers from the Fresno Police Department were called to a crash around 2 a.m. on April 7, 2026, Fox 26 reported. When they arrived at the scene, they found an abandoned vehicle in the road and another vehicle in the nearby canal with a woman inside.
They quickly removed the woman from the vehicle in the canal and tried life-saving measures before taking her to the hospital. She was identified as 41-year-old Martha Hernandez. Sadly, she died at the hospital.
Hours later, rescue crews learned that her 9-year-old son Adrian had been in the car with her, KFSN reported.
“Our crews came back out to the scene, participated in bringing the vehicle out of the canal and then started a search of the entire canal system,” Fresno Fire Chief Billy Alcorn told the outlet.
The rescue operation lasted hours, according to the outlet, and at one point, a drone was used to try to find Adrian’s body. First responders eventually found his body two miles downstream.
The driver turned himself in.
On April 6, Timothy Seth Chavez turned himself in to police nearly 24 hours after the crash, KFSN reported. Police believe Chavez ran a red light and smashed into Hernandez in her SUV, sending it into the canal. He then left the scene. A witness told police that Chavez was drunk.
The 22-year-old surrendered himself at Fresno County Jail, The Fresno Bee reported. He was taken to the Fresno Police Department to be interviewed, police said.
Officers determined that Chavez was responsible in the deaths of Martha and Adrian Hernandez, and authorities charged him with two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter and two counts of felony hit-and-run. He was also charged with driving without insurance and driving on a suspended license.
A GoFundMe account has been set up.
Hernandez’s niece Lilliana Perez set up a fundraiser for her surviving son. “My aunt Martha was a devoted Christian woman who dedicated herself to her church and family,” Perez wrote on the GoFundMe account. “It breaks my heart to think about what they both experienced all while the driver fled the scene. This man showed no concern and no remorse running away from the scene on foot ignoring the consequences of his behavior.
“Our Adrian was a very pure and innocent person, son, brother,student who loved school and was always involved in church with his mother,” she added of her young cousin.
“Now, as my other cousin prepares to graduate, he not only is left to face this milestone without his mom and little brother but also left with the weight to give his mother the funeral she deserves by giving her a service in her hometown and by transporting her to her childhood hometown in Mexico where her closest loved ones await, the message on the page continued. “The sudden loss has brought unexpected funeral expenses and living costs at a time that should be filled with hope and celebration.”
