Talented architect among those killed in I-75 pileup - New York News | NYC Breaking News

Talented architect from Allen Park among those killed in I-75 pileup

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DETROIT (WJBK) -

"We're all just passing through and we all hope to leave a special mark that we did something right and he left that mark.  He was just a good guy," said John Manolis.

He lovingly remembers his little brother, Larry.  The 54-year-old from Allen Park was the youngest of five brothers and two sisters in a large Greek family.  He was driving in his Pontiac Torrent when the white out hit and cars and trucks started piling up on I-75.

"He got caught between a semi and a car hauler and from what I gathered they kind of just caught him and he got squeezed in there, then he got bounced around.  He might have hit the retaining wall and whatever, and the car wound up pretty much kind of underneath a car hauler," Manolis explained.

It's believed Larry died instantly.  The talented architect, who lived alone, loved his family, loved recycling and loved the City of Detroit.  He often gave visitors tours and sketched some of the city's beautiful buildings.

"Just hard to deal with.  He was too good," Manolis said.

Also killed in the chain reaction crash were two children from Windsor -- a seven-year-old boy and his nine-year-old stepsister.  They were in a black Mazda along with several family members.

At Detroit Receiving Hospital, five of the seven victims transported there now have been released.  We're told the two remaining patients are the parents of the Windsor children who died.  The father is in good condition and the mother is listed as critical.  Right next door at Children's Hospital, another child from that car remains in critical condition.

Police have not released the names of the victims from Windsor, but they are in so many people's thoughts, even the Manolis family, who suffered a great loss of their own.

"It's just terrible," remarked Manolis.

It was a split second on the freeway that changed countless lives forever.

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