KANSAS CITY, Mo. — In a week, Deidre Bell and her husband James will say final goodbyes to their granddaughter, Kenisha Turner.
"She was so full of life. She was 22 years old. You know, she just began to really live her life," Deidre Bell said.
In the early hours of Feb. 8, Turner was driving south on U.S. 169 near Missouri 9. She had just dropped off a friend after a night out on the town.
Police say around 1:55 a.m. another driver saw the young woman lose control of her GMC Yukon while speeding.
"The GMC struck the guardrail on the west side of the highway. After striking the guardrail, the GMC re-directed and traveled across the lanes of traffic and went airborne over the side of the concrete jersey barrier on the east side of the highway," the narrative of the police report read.
Turner's SUV plunged 80 feet, hit a tree and burst into flames. Turner was thrown from the SUV in the violent crash.
"I got the phone and as soon as I heard, I just began to scream because it wasn't real. You know? It was like a dream," Bell said. "I couldn't wake up because it was real."
Turner's grandparents are now left to comfort her four young children.
"The six-year-old — he misses his mom, you know, quite naturally. And then the two-year-old has asked her for a mom and we really can't tell her because she's two," Bell said. "It's just hard. It's really hard."
The memorial service for Turner is set for Feb. 27 at 2908 Indiana Ave. in Kansas City, Missouri.
The visitation will take place from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., followed by the funeral at 11 a.m.
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to the help the family with funeral costs and other expenses.
After 41 Action News inquiries about the stretch, the Missouri Department of Transportation said it will investigate the stretch of highway where 77 crashes have been reported over the last three years.
