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Fatal bus crash: Vigil honors engaged couple, other victims

Mourners gather Tuesday for a candlelight vigil in the memory of Michael Myvett and Mattison Haywood, who were killed when a FedEx truck crossed a median on Interstate 5 and hit a chartered bus.
(Michael Robinson Chavez / Los Angeles Times)
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Blue and white balloons carried messages scrawled in marker. “Rest in peace,” one read. A glass candle with a picture of Jesus on it flickered nearby, and someone set a bouquet of flowers on the porch.

About 200 people gathered at Debra “Granny” Loyd’s home in Manchester Square late Tuesday afternoon for a vigil to honor her grandson, Michael Myvett, and the other victims of the fiery collision between a FedEx truck and a tour bus that killed 10 people in Northern California last week.

Friends and family took turns sharing memories of Myvett, a 29-year-old Humboldt State University graduate, and his fiancée, Mattison Haywood, who also died in the crash.

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Myvett, who was on the charter bus because he was chaperoning a trip for high school students visiting his alma mater, worked with disadvantaged youth at the Center for Autism and Related Disorders in Torrance. Haywood planned to become a doctor.

Family friend Najee Ali characterized the young couple, who got engaged in Paris over the holidays, as ambitious and dedicated.

“In a place where no one is supposed to make it, South Central, they beat the stereotypes,” Ali said. “Shining examples of what the best of South L.A. is.”

Nearby, another balloon flapped with the wind. It read: “Thank you for showing love to children.”

About the same time as the vigil, Glenn County Sheriff-Coroner Larry Jones officially identified the driver of the FedEx truck involved in the crash as Timothy Paul Evans, 32, of Elk Grove.

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As was the case for the bus driver, a chaperon and a high school senior identified earlier Tuesday, Evans’ body was so severely burned that it required a forensic scientist examining dental records to confirm his identity.

marisa.gerber@latimes.com

Twitter: @marisagerber

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