“Take every moment you can to be with your kids,” said Mario Lux-Pacheco’s mom
A 5-year-old boy has died after a tree fell on his mobile home in Arkansas during a severe storm.
Mario Lux-Pacheco was at home in Little Rock with his mom and siblings when a storm struck on Saturday, April 5, and he went to his mom’s room. He was at the end of her bed when the tree fell onto the house, killing him, according to ABC affiliate KATV, NBC affiliate KARK and CBS affiliate KTHV.
His mother, Cassandra Pacheco, and her three older children survived, according to KTHV.
The Little Rock Fire Department did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
Cassandra told the outlet that it was raining when the power went out that morning, so she decided to bring her kids into her back bedroom.
“My five-year-old was at the end of my bed,” Cassandra told KTHV. “Jumping around, playing like usual. The minute I saw he was going to get on the bed, I reached for him, and then everything went black.”
After the tree fell through her home, Cassandra remembered her legs being trapped, and the home was destroyed. When she couldn’t find her youngest child, she knew something was wrong, she told the outlet.
“After trying to search for him and calling everybody,” she told KTHV. “I came to the conclusion that he was under the tree.”
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Since Mario’s death, the family has been grieving the friendly and “outspoken” little boy.
“Don’t take life for granted,” the mom said, according to the outlet. “Take every moment you can to be with your kids.”
Cassandra isn’t the one to be impacted by deadly weather over the last week. Since Wednesday, April 2, at least 25 people have died after intense flooding and tornadoes wreaked havoc on communities in the South and Midwest, according to ABC News.
Following the tragedy in Little Rock, the community has surrounded the mom and her kids with love and support.
On Monday, April 7, neighbors and loved ones gathered for a balloon release in Mario’s honor, KATV reported. As of Thursday, April 10, a GoFundMe organized by Cassandra’s cousin has raised close to $30,000.
“My little sunshine, my little baby, my best friend,” Cassandra said at the balloon-release event. “I wouldn’t wish this upon any other mom anywhere in the world. But, glad to know that Mario had so many people behind him that loved and cared for him.”
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