Detroit family remembers 18-year-old killed in vehicle crash: "It's a hurtful feeling"
(CBS DETROIT) - A young life gone too soon. That's what the family of 18-year-old Tamya Durr tells CBS News Detroit after she was killed in a high-speed crash involving a drunk driver Sunday night.
The crash also killed the person driving the Dodge Charger that Durr was in, and seriously injured another passenger in that vehicle. Detroit police say the driver of the Charger was speeding, and a second driver was drunk.
"I was in bed," said Tamy's father, Terry Durr. "I got a call about 8:30 from her godmother that she was missing."
Terry Durr says he started making calls, and that's when he learned his daughter may have been involved in a deadly crash.
"It's crazy, [I'm] hurt," said Tamya's mother, Korliss Paulateer. "It's a hurtful feeling."
The crash happened late Sunday night, around 11:40 p.m., near Gratiot and Harper avenues on Detroit's east side. Tamya was a high school graduate who her parents say was spirited and full of life.
"She had the rest of her life ahead of her," Terry Durr said. "No parent expects to wake up in the morning after speaking with your daughter that night to hear that she's deceased."
Paulateer says the drunk driver should have never been behind the wheel.
"Just don't [drive drunk]," she said. "Leave the alcohol alone if you want to drive [or] just don't drive at all."
Tamya's family plans to hold a candlelight vigil at 8 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024, at 9963 Gratiot Avenue.