Over £16,000 raised for family who lost loved ones in A64 crash - and then were burgled
A fundraiser has been set up for a father and son who lost family members in a crash on the A64 Malton Road in August.
A fundraiser has been set up for a father and son who lost family members in a crash on the A64 Malton Road - and then were burgled.
On Tuesday 24th August three people - including two children - died following a car crash on the A64.
The incident happened near Jinnah Restaurant and involved a white HGV and a grey Motor home.
Three of the passengers in the Motor home - a 44 year old woman, a nine year old girl and a five year old boy - were all pronounced dead at the scene.
The fourth passenger, a six year old boy, was taken to hospital with a serious head injury.
The driver of the Motor home, a 48 year old man, was taken to hospital with serious but not believed to be life threatening, injuries. The driver of the HGV was un-injured.
When the father and son returned home from hospital they found the house had been burgled.
Traffic Sergeant Paul Cording, from the North Yorkshire Police Roads Policing Group, set up a fundraising page with an initial target of £1,000:
"The dad and the son had serious injuries, but thankfully have been allowed home. Tragically when they got back they found they had been burgled.
"A lot of things had been taken - some materialistic things that can be replaced like an Xbox and TV, but there's also things that had sentimental value and can never be replaced.
"I'm a parent as well and it was just a heart-breaking situation to hear and read about after everything they had gone through. Based on that, myself and my team and a lot of the emergency services couldn't just sit by and do nothing.
"We set up the fundraising page, which has had a phenomenal response".
Over £16,000 has been raised so far - including a one-off donation of £500 from a member of the public.
Paul says the community has rallied round to help:
"It is absolutely incredible and will hopefully prove to the family that there are an awful lot of good people out there who are willing to make a difference.
"It's a heart-breaking story and if I can be a conduit to helping them then that's fantastic. Some things are irreplaceable but hopefully they can use some of the money to rebuild their lives moving forward.
"My colleagues who are investigating the incident are in regular contact, and hopefully based on a conversation I had at the weekend I can meet the dad and discuss things going forward. It's obviously still a raw emotive subject at the moment.
"We see the worst in people in our job and also the very best, and this fundraiser hopefully shows the family that there are a lot of good people, and I'd like to extend my personal thanks to everyone who has contributed to trying to help this family moving forward".
Details of the fundraising page can be found here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/6667z-help-this-family-rebuild-their-lives?fbclid=IwAR07-481vx-LqgonYHF3LqyCzSShz8gD0V0EAS6ZqVJrEVJpF8EgT7Hmtjg