Long New Year’s Holiday Ends in Tragedy

LANCASTER —  Randal Miller and his longtime companion, Barbara Lane, were practically inseparable.

The Lancaster couple spent long summer days boating and water skiing at Pyramid Lake. They shared cooking, laundry and cleaning chores around their small ranch house. They jointly cared for their daughter, Alisha, 5, and Lane’s son, Wyatt, 10.

They talked about culminating their 10-year relationship in marriage later this year.

Their dreams of a life together ended when they and both children perished together Sunday afternoon. Their Mazda Protege collided with a Pontiac Firebird on the rain-slick Antelope Valley Freeway, then careened off the roadway and over a 10-foot embankment.

The driver of the Firebird, Chris L. Panaggio, 22, of Costa Mesa, suffered a concussion and was taken to Lancaster Community Hospital. No charges have been filed against him.

Investigators were trying to determine if speed played a role in the accident, said Sgt. Robert Hulbert, a California Highway Patrol spokesman. There was no evidence that alcohol was involved, he said, adding that the wet road was a likely factor.

“They were both upbeat and friendly,” said Bethel Harrell, Lane’s mother, fighting back tears Monday. “Love was the glue in their relationship. Now, we are going to bury them together.”

The fatal accident was the tragic conclusion of a long New Year’s weekend spent with Miller’s family in Simi Valley.

On Sunday afternoon, as they prepared for the trip home, Alisha and Wyatt clambered into the Protege’s back seat. Barbara, 36, a housewife and respiratory therapy student, climbed into the front passenger seat. Miller, 34, an independent appliance repairman, got behind the wheel.

Miller was driving north on the Antelope Valley Freeway, just south of the Palmdale Boulevard exit, when Panaggio lost control of his Firebird in the southbound lane and crossed the center divider into Miller’s path. The Protege slammed into the Firebird, knocking the Mazda off the roadway and over the embankment. Miller, Lane and the children were pronounced dead at the scene.

On Monday, Miller and Lane were remembered by friends and relatives as an outgoing couple, deeply committed to the children.

“We used to barbecue, go boating on Pyramid Lake, trade videos, watch their kids and take care of their dogs,” said neighbor Stephan Mason, who along with his wife, Dina, appeared shaken by news of the four deaths.

“Both of the children were very good students and very well liked,” said Sheldon Epstein, principal at Mariposa Elementary School, where Wyatt was in the fourth grade and Alisha in kindergarten.

To help students cope with the untimely deaths of their schoolmates, Epstein said a school psychologist was on campus encouraging the children to write notes or draw pictures describing their feelings. Epstein also intended to write a letter to the parents of Wyatt’s and Alisha’s classmates.

“Mr. Miller was very involved with the children,” Epstein said. “He was here a number of times asking what he could do for his daughter and son. . . . It’s a tremendous loss to the family, community and definitely to our school.”

Donations can be sent to the Lane Family Fund c/o Grace Resource Center, 44932 N. Yucca Ave., Lancaster, Calif. 93534. For more information, call Steve Baker at (805) 940-5272.