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EAGLE MOUNTAIN — Thomas Powell wasn't sure how to break the news to his 7-year-old son that the boy's mother and two younger brothers won't be home when he's released from the hospital.
"I haven't told him," he said Sunday afternoon. "I don't know how to tell him."
Since Wednesday night, Anthony Powell has been at University Hospital's burn center, recovering from third- degree burns to his right foot. The boy had been playing with a lighter at the family's Eagle Mountain home, and his pant leg caught fire.
Thomas Powell was at the burn center with Anthony on Saturday afternoon when a Utah Highway Patrol trooper broke the news to him that his wife, Inndia, and their other two boys, 3-year-old Alexander and 1-year-old Ashton, were killed in an auto accident.
She was a great mother, a hard worker and a good friend.She was my best friend. She was loved by everybody. Everybody who knew her loved her.
–- Thomas Powell
"She was a great mother, a hard worker and a good friend," Thomas Powell said from his home in Eagle Mountain. "She was my best friend. She was loved by everybody. Everybody who knew her loved her."
Inndia Cherie Powell, 26, was on her way to visit a friend in Evanston, Wyo., when the Dodge Caravan she was driving slid off a slick, snow-covered freeway and into a river. The woman was caught in a snowstorm, with limited visibility, police said.
Inndia Powell was traveling east on I-80 about 10 miles northeast of Coaville about 2:30 p.m. when she lost control of the minivan. The vehicle slid off the east side of the freeway, hit a fence, rolled down an embankment and ended up upside-down in the river.
Police said the tread on the minivan's rear tires was worn, and that contributed to the accident. Inndia Powell and the two boys all were wearing safety restraints.
Alexander and Ashton were taken by ambulance to a Wyoming hospital but were not able to be resuscitated.
The boys, their father said, "liked to be rowdy and wrestle." Alexander was a fan of Star Wars and Transformers, and both he and Ashton loved trucks and airplanes.
Thomas and Inndia Powell would have been married eight years on New Year's Day. The couple hugged and kissed for the final time Saturday morning at the burn center. Inndia had planned to return to the hospital Saturday evening and spend the night with Anthony.
Thomas Powell said Anthony got out of bed late Wednesday night when he couldn't sleep and had gone downstairs to eat some of his Halloween candy. Alexander later joined his older brother, who had found a barbecue igniter and was burning candy wrappers.
At some point, Anthony's pants caught on fire, Thomas Powell said. The fire spread up the boy's right pant leg and to his shirt, though he was only injured on his right foot.
"Alex … ran upstairs and told Inndia, 'Anthony's on fire.' She sprang out of bed, came (downstairs) and found him just sitting here burning," he said.
Anthony is recovering from a skin-graft surgery and is expected to be released from the hospital this week, by Wednesday at the latest, Thomas Powell said. The boy will have to undergo physical therapy and relearn how to walk.
And together, father and son will have to learn to adjust to life without Inndia, Alexander and Ashton. But they won't have to do it alone.
"We have a lot of support in our family," Thomas Powell said. Friends and neighbors also have been very supportive, he said.
*An account has been set up at America First Credit Union under the name "Inndia Powell Famly Memorial".
*KSL.com has not verified the accuracy of the information provided with respect to the account nor does KSL.com assure that the monies deposited to the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account you should consult your own advisors and otherwise proceed at your own risk.
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Written by Jared Page and Sandra Yi.
