11-year-old killed in Independence crash was student at Grandview Middle School

An 11-year-old girl who was killed in a crash in the west metro was a fifth-grade student at Grandview Middle School in Mound, 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS has learned.

The girl was riding with her parents and three siblings on the way to school Wednesday morning when an 18-year-old driver ran a stop sign at the intersection of County Road 6 and County Road 110 in Independence and struck the family’s vehicle, the West Hennepin Public Safety Department said.

All six victims inside the GMC Acadia were transported to nearby hospitals, but the 11-year-old girl did not survive.

The family of the 11-year-old identified her as Lilyana Loycano and released the following statement:

“Our beloved 11-year-old daughter, Lilyana, along with our family, was involved in a serious accident on Wednesday morning. We are devastated to share that after being on life support for the last two days, Lilyana passed at Children’s Minnesota earlier today. We find comfort in Lilyana’s legacy soon living on through organ donation. For those wanting to support our family during this difficult time, please consider donating to this GoFundMe.  Lilyana was the heart of our family, with a giving and generous spirit that was felt by all around her. Our family would like to thank the community for its thoughts and well wishes, and request privacy at this difficult time. We will not be releasing any further information to the media.“

“The death of any young person is a loss that, in one way or another, affects us all,” Westonka Public Schools Superintendent Kevin Borg said in a message to district families on Wednesday. “In our small community, even those without direct ties to the [victim’s] family may need help processing this news.”

Borg said the district’s crisis support team would be at Grandview Middle School starting on Thursday and counselors are available to students at schools throughout the district.

A prayer vigil for the family was held Wednesday evening at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Wayzata.