The only surviving family member from a car crash that killed three people on the Big Island yesterday was an 8-year-old girl who almost died after being born prematurely.

Family members said Brandon Ng, 32, his longtime girlfriend, Suzanne Leong, 30, and their 5 year-old son, Aidon Ng, died in the crash, which may have been alcohol-related.

Police said Ng's 2008 Chevrolet station wagon crossed the center line on Mamalahoa Highway late Saturday night and slammed into an oncoming 1999 Mercury multipurpose vehicle near Mana Road in Waimea.

The couple's 8-year-old daughter, Aimee Ng, survived and is now in stable condition at the Queen's Medical Center after she was airlifted to Honolulu for treatment.

Eight years ago, Aimee was rushed to Honolulu when she was born three months premature and weighed only 1 1/2 pounds.

“;She's been fighting her whole life,”; said Frank Torres, Brandon Ng's father, who said Aimee needs 24-hour care because of complications after her birth.

  Big Island Car Crash Takes Three Lives

 

Three family members are dead after a head on collision in Waimea on Mamalahoa Highway last night.

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Ng and Leong, 30, died at the scene. Aidon Ng died about 40 minutes later. Brandon and Aidon Ng were not wearing seat belts.

A 47-year-old Keaau man driving the other vehicle was also flown to the Queen's Medical Center in guarded condition.

“;Hard, it's really hard,”; Sheena Ng, Brandon's younger sister, said yesterday when asked how the family is coping.

She said the couple had been together since high school, more than 12 years ago.

Leong was a full-time mother and was “;very sweet ... very happy, outgoing, always laughing and smiling.”;

Brandon Ng, the second-oldest brother, was “;funny”; and “;always trying to make everybody laugh,”; she said between sobs. He worked as a roofer with his father and enjoyed spending time with his family, she said.

“;Aidon was everybody's best friend—everybody's,”; she said.

Ng had left a friend's house and was heading home with his family before the crash, family said.

Police said Brandon Ng may have been drinking before the crash. Speed was also a factor, police said.

Torres, 53, struggled with the possibility that drinking led to the crash.

“;My grandson was my whole life,”; he said. “;They were my whole life. If other people can learn from our pain ... They don't realize their actions will hurt a lot of people.”;

It was the second fatal traffic crash related to alcohol over the weekend on the Big Island.

Jesse Mahelona, a former NFL defensive tackle, was killed a mile from his Kailua-Kona home when his car went off the road Saturday morning.

Mahelona, 26, is survived by his wife, Brandi, who is pregnant with the couple's second child.