Two friends killed on way to funeral

Two friends who were travelling to the funeral of another young friend who died in a car smash in rural NSW have become crash victims themselves.

Police tape restricts access to a street in Sydney

File. (AAP) Source: AAP

A group of friends on their way to the funeral of a young woman killed in a car crash in rural NSW have themselves become victims, with two killed and another two seriously injured.

Jake Chaffey, 21, and Claudia Chown, 18, were passengers in a car that veered off the road and smashed into a tree near Bathurst in central NSW on Tuesday night.

Ms Chown was killed instantly and Mr Chaffey was pulled out of the Ford Fiesta alive at the Great Western Highway at Yetholme, about 20km from Bathurst, but died in Liverpool Hospital the next day.

The male driver, 24, was seriously injured and a 31-year-old woman sitting in the back seat suffered multiple fractures - they were both taken to hospital.

As floral tributes were laid for the pair, Mr Chaffey's sister Kayla Daley wrote of her family's heartache.

"Making decisions on how to say goodbye makes it so real," she posted on Facebook on Friday.

"I can't put it into words how lost I am."

An emotional Ms Daley said the group had been on their way to the funeral of another friend.

"They were heading back to Young to go to Tumut tomorrow for their friend's funeral who passed away in a car accident last week," she told the Nine Network following the crash.

The friends had been grieving over the death of Rickie-lee Atkinson, 20, whose funeral was planned to be held at an Anglican church in Tumut on Thursday.

The former Cootamundra High School student died in a crash on May 14 near Wallendbeen in southern NSW.

She was a passenger in a Holden Commodore, whose driver allegedly failed to stop and led police on a chase.

The pursuit was terminated by police "for safety reasons", who later found the Holden crashed into an embankment.

The 20-year-old's mother said she could never forgive the driver.

"I know who killed you and I'll never forgive them," Leanne Atkinson wrote on Facebook.

Tributes also poured online for Ms Chown.

"Gone so young, but never to be forgotten," wrote Shikiya James.


Share

2 min read

Published

Updated

Source: AAP


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world