Community mourns loss of EMT in deadly head-on collision in Seguin

Acadian Ambulance to host a memorial for the EMT on Wednesday.

San Antonio colleagues, family, and friends mourn the loss of 23-year-old San Antonio EMT.
Rawlstock/Getty Images

MYSA
By Zachary-Taylor Wright
November 21, 2023

A community is deeply mourning the loss of a 23-year-old girl’s life after a crash in Seguin left two drivers dead Sunday morning, including 37-year-old Marcus Keshawn Harris, of Luling. Family members, colleagues, and friends of Natalie Gage-Avila, 23, of New Braunfels remember the young woman fondly and are expressing grief at the loss of the young life.

Gage-Avila and Harris were involved a head-on collision at the intersection of Cordova Road and Highway 46 in Seguin in the very early hours of Sunday morning, November 19. Tragically, both drivers were pronounced dead at the scene. In the wake of Gage-Avila’s death, several have made posts online and spoke with MySA expressing grief over the loss.

“The Acadian Ambulance family is deeply saddened by the sudden loss of Natalie Gage-Avila,” a spokesperson with Acadian Ambulance told MySA. “Natalie was a compassionate caregiver as an EMT and was working on becoming a paramedic. It is tragic when people who dedicate their lives to helping others are lost so young. Our prayers are with her family and friends. She leaves behind a tremendous legacy and will be fondly remembered by her friends at Acadian.”

An obituary for Gage-Avila shared online Tuesday, November 21, described a community “cloaked in sorrow” amid the loss of the young woman, describing a large gap left in the San Antonio community where she worked.

“Natalie Gage-Avila, known for her unwavering commitment to saving lives as an EMT, tragically became the victim of a fatal car accident,” the obituary reads. “Her passing has left the entire San Antonio community in mourning as they reflect on the life of a compassionate health care provider whose dedication touched the lives of many.”

The obituary goes on to say her coworkers at Accadian Ambulance remember her as a person always willing to lend a hand or to be a source of comfort and says the news of her death has not only impacted her San Antonio coworkers but made shockwaves through the San Antonio health care community.

At around 12:50 a.m. Sunday morning, according to a statement from the Seguin Police Department, officers were dispatched to the intersection with Highway 46 in Seguin after a Jeep Cherokee headed south appears to have drifted into the northbound lane of 46, hitting a Chrysler 300 head on. While the statement from the police department doesn’t identify who was driving which vehicle, The Seguin Gazette says Gage-Avila was driving the Jeep.

Friends and family of Gage-Avila describe a strong-willed young woman with a sympathetic heart, mirroring many of the sentiments shared by her coworkers and Accadian Ambulance.

“You’ve been a force of nature since the day you were born,” Debi Gage Pollock wrote on Facebook. “You brightened every room you walked into. You always had a kind word for anyone who crossed your path. Your absence will leave a hole in the fabric of our family. We miss you so much.”

Pollock’s was just one of numerous posts made on the social media platform describing the impact Gage-Avila had on those she came across in her short life.