Three years after five teens died, close call renews calls for safety at Fort Myers curve

FORT MYERS, Fla. (WINK) — Three years after five teenagers died when their car left a sharp curve near Topgolf and landed in a retention pond, their mothers are calling for more safety measures at the same location.

This time, they aren't mourning another death. They're pointing to fresh skid marks in the grass and evidence that another vehicle recently veered off the road near the memorial built for their children.

For them, it's another warning about a curve they have long considered dangerous.

The five teenagers who died in June 2023 were Eric Paul, Jackson Eyre, Amanda Ferguson, Breanna Coleman and Jesus Salinas.

According to the Fort Myers Police Department's investigation, the teenagers were traveling in a black Kia Forte on Top Golf Way when the vehicle was traveling 72 mph around the curve.

The Kia hit a curb, lost traction, and slid. The vehicle then went down a hill, hit a tree and became airborne before landing in the retention pond.

All five people inside the vehicle drowned.

Three of the victims' mothers — Ismelda Aguirre, Elizabeth Ferguson and Kassie Rohaley — returned to the memorial on Friday to talk about their children and their concerns about the road.

Aguirre remembered her daughter, Breanna, as someone who lived life to the fullest.

"She was very outgoing. She lived life to the fullest," Aguirre said. "She always had something to do, somewhere to go, and someone to see."

Ferguson described her daughter, Amanda, as caring and outspoken.

"She would go out of her way for other people," Ferguson said. "She stood up for people."

Rohaley described her son, Eric, as "very loving and helpful" and said he wanted to make a difference in the world.

Ferguson said she wants people to remember the teenagers for who they were — not only for the way they died.

"This is just a second of their lives," she said. "Everything else is what I want people to remember first."

The families continue to maintain the memorial at the site. 

Wednesday night, the families said another vehicle veered off the road at the curve.

Fresh skid marks can be seen in the grass near the memorial, along with tire tracks and damage to fencing around the site.

There is no indication from the information provided to WINK News that the vehicle collided with another vehicle or that anyone was seriously injured.

The mothers described it as a close call.

"This just happens to be the most severe one after," Rohaley said. "Luckily, they walked away from it. They got to go home to their families."

For the mothers, seeing another vehicle leave the roadway brought them back to the night their children died. They say they want officials to consider whether the road itself could be made safer.

The curve now has reflective chevron signs and other signage marking the turn. The mothers say those signs were not in place on the night their children died.

They want officials to consider additional measures, including a guardrail, rumble strips, speed control measures or additional lighting.

"Ideally, a guardrail would be nice," Ferguson said. "A speed bump, even like rumble strips, something that's going to slow you down."

The mothers' concerns extend beyond speeding. They said drivers can lose control for many reasons, including a medical emergency, an animal entering the road or another unexpected situation.

"You really cannot see how deep that turn is until you get into it," Rohaley said.

The mothers also point to the retention pond immediately beyond the sharp turn.

They argue road design should account for locations where a sharp curve is near a body of water or another potential hazard.

"When the architects are... building the roads and the designs, I think they do need to take into consideration specifically water and sharp turns," Ferguson said.

The mothers say their concerns aren't limited to the location where their children died. They believe transportation officials and local leaders should look at other locations where sharp curves, steep drop-offs or bodies of water could create additional risks for drivers.

They point to tools such as guardrails, rumble strips, lighting and improved signage as potential ways to give drivers additional protection if they lose control.

For the mothers, the latest close call is a reminder that the danger they see at the curve hasn't disappeared.

"How many more crosses and flags have to be in this area before they do something?" Ferguson asked.

Three years after five families lost their children, the memorial and emotion remains.

"I'm just taking it one day at a time," Aguirre said.