Two children have died in a horrific crash in Dubbo after the 4WD they were passengers in collided with a B-double truck at 3:30am on Saturday morning.
Taite Van Der Heyden, 12, and his brother Kobi, nine, died at the scene while their mum Jen, 41, and husband Jason, 37, were treated for shock and minor injuries.
The youngest son Scout, four, was flown to the Children’s Hospital at Westmead in a serious condition and his parents flew to his bedside late Saturday afternoon.
The driver of the B-double truck, 53, was trapped in his vehicle for less than an hour before the Dubbo Rescue Squad volunteer service and NSW Fire and Rescue cut him free and he was flown to Royal North Shore Hospital suffering a significant back injury.
Jen and Jason, from Queensland, also have a daughter but she was not in the car at the time of the accident.
“They are a beautiful family who love each other so much,” a friend told The Daily Telegraph.
“Family was everything to them.”
It’s understood the family was driving home to Queensland at the time of the collision.
The collision was so intense that the crash site extends more than 500m between Burraway Rd and North Terramungamine Rd, about 12km north of Dubbo.
Sources said there was no fog or rain at the time of the incident, and although the 4WD was travelling north while the truck headed south, it was not a head-on collision.
Inspector Jason Pietruszka, from Orana LAC, described the scene as “traumatic”.
“We will continue to support the family at this trying time,” he said.
“The adult parents are being treated for shock.”
The NSW Police Crash Investigation Unit and local police are investigating the accident and a report will be prepared for the coroner outlining the circumstances surrounding the deaths.
Our deepest condolences go to the Van Der Heydens in this devastating time.
