Mom Driving with Kids to Visit Family Dies in Crash Alongside Daughter, 3: 'Feels Like a Bad Dream'

Angela Sippel was driving with her four children in Florida on Saturday when their car crashed, according to family members, who say the three surviving children are on the road to recovery

Sippel family. Photo: GoFundMe

A single-vehicle car crash claimed the life of a mother and her three-year-old daughter, while her three other children survived and were hospitalized with critical injuries.

Angela Sippel, 40, was driving with her children in Bradford County, Fla., when their car crashed on Saturday morning, according to First Coast News.

"On Saturday, March 4th, the four Sippel children Niyah (10), Joslyn (7), Jude (5), and Eden (3) were traveling with their mother Angela to visit family in Gainesville," Susan Goodrich, Angela's mother, wrote on a GoFundMe page set up to raise money for the family.

"Around 10:45 they were involved in a devastating accident which killed Angela and Eden," Goodrich continued. "The other children were transported to the hospital in critical condition, but are expected to survive and are making progress."

Florida Highway Patrol said the crash took place that morning when for "unknown reasons" the vehicle went off the roadway and into a ditch, according to a news release obtained by PEOPLE. The vehicle then "became airborne" and went through a small field before overturning and coming to rest against a building.

Although police initially said the woman was wearing a seatbelt and the children were not, they have since "determined that the adult female was also NOT wearing a seatbelt."

"All five occupants were ejected from the vehicle at various times during the crash," an FHP spokesperson told PEOPLE.

Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles

Molly Sippel, the children's aunt, told First Coast News they have no idea what caused Angela to swerve off the road.

"My heart just breaks. It's hard to even think about what they are all going through," she told the outlet. "It just feels like a bad dream."

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Speaking with Jacksonville station WJXT, Goodrich said that Joslyn, who "has a broken ankle and some lacerations" while Jude, 5, broke his orbital bone.

The children's aunt told First Coast News that Niyah broke her legs and right arm as a result of the crash.

In a series of updates on the GoFundMe page, which has raised over $80,000 as of Wednesday, the family shared that Niyah, who has already undergone several surgeries, "has a very long road ahead of her," but is making "gradual improvements."

Meanwhile, the family said on Tuesday that they expect to meet with doctors soon to "discuss possible discharge dates" for the younger children.

"It's a miracle they have survived the crash and made it this far. We are humbled by the outpouring of love and support for this young family," read a statement from the Sippel and Goodrich families. In a separate update, the families thanked first responders for everything done at the scene to provide the children with the "best chance of a full recovery."

"We are humbled by the outpouring of love and support for this young family," they wrote over the weekend. "We appreciate continued thoughts and prayers.