Cristina Biffle, the wife of NASCAR driver Greg Biffle, sent a chilling final text to her mother moments before a deadly plane crash claimed the lives of the couple and their two children. The tragedy unfolded Thursday morning when the family's Cessna C500 went down while trying to land at Statesville Regional Airport in North Carolina shortly before 10:30 a.m. ET, bursting into flames on impact.
Cristina apparently appeared to sense that something was seriously wrong during the flight, according to heartbreaking details reported by People. Sensing something was wrong, Cristina, moments before the deadly crash, sent a short but devastating message to her mother, Cathy Grossu: "We're in trouble."
Revelations from a Devastated Mother
"She texted me from the plane and she said, 'We're in trouble.' And that was it," Grossu told the outlet after Greg, Cristina and their 14-year-old daughter Emma and five-year-old son Ryder all died in the crash.
"So we're devastated. We're brokenhearted."
Harrowing video from the scene showed the Cessna engulfed in flames on the runway as first responders rushed in to help.
Authorities also identified Craig Wadsworth, Dennis Dutton, and Dutton's son, Jack, as victims of the crash.
Cristina's mother said that everyone on board had been traveling to Florida to celebrate a birthday.
Overwhelmed by grief, the mother and grandmother described the loss as "hard to bear," adding that she still couldn't "believe they're gone."
Grossu told People that she couldn't recall the exact last words she shared with her daughter, Greg, or the children — only that "they were happy."
Entire Family Gone
Greg, a semi-retired NASCAR driver, was widely respected for his humanitarian work. He recently drew attention for personally flying into Western North Carolina after Hurricane Helene to help with relief efforts.
"Beyond his racing career, he gave of himself for the betterment of our community. Most notably, Greg spent countless hours of his time helping the citizens of North Carolina during the disasters that followed Hurricane Helene," NASCAR said as part of a statement.
Grossu said one of her final conversations with Cristina centered on the Santa letters she loved sending to families in need, a small act of kindness that now carries even deeper meaning.
"She said, 'Mom, can you go pick up the last 17 letters that are at Staples? I want to get them in the mail before I get on the plane tomorrow,'" she told People. "So I ran over and got 'em and took them to their house, and when they got home last night, she put them in envelopes and finished them all up to get them off to those last 17 families to bring joy to them, and that would be the last thing that she would've done."
Greg enjoyed a successful racing career, winning 19 NASCAR Cup Series races and earning a Busch Series championship along the way.
