Four families have endured months of grieving and sadness. Four teens drowned after crashing their car while going camping. The incident happened back in 2023. Now, officials are offering new information on the tragic deaths calling them avoidable.
According to the BBC, Jevon Hirst, 16, Harvey Owen, 17, Wilf Fitchett, 17, and 18-year-old Hugo Morris all drowned. Their vehicle went off the road during a camping trip in the United Kingdom. Morris was at the wheel, having just got his license six months prior. He ended up losing control of the vehicle by driving too fast around a bend in the road.
Ian Thompson, a forensic collision investigator for the North Wales police, believes wreckless driving played a significant factor in their deaths. He called the accident avoidable. Additionally, investigators found that the tires didn't have enough air pressure for four people.
"The vehicle has come into the bend a little bit too quickly and has understeered," Thompson said. "Mr. Morris negotiated the right-hand bend, entered onto the grass verge, went down a steep embankment and then into a water-filled drainage ditch."
Camping Trip Deaths
Thompson noted that it was raining during the boys' camping trip. But weather is unlikely to have played a role in the crash. However, it did cause the river to rise three feet. Meanwhile, senior coroner Kate Robertson found the road didn't have enough warning for drivers about the bend.
"As a family we are heartbroken at losing Wilf, but we are also heartbroken about how difficult it has been for the other parents — particularly for the parents of the driver," said Fitchett's mother, Heather Sanderson. "We gave Wilf permission to go because we believed that the driver had passed his driving test — which he had."
She added, "We had done our research and we would make the same decision again. We were blessed to have him in our lives for 17 years. We are proud to be his family."
Meanwhile, Moriss' parents described their son.
"No words can express our loss," they said. "He was happy and looking forward to the weekend. The world is shattered, bent and crooked now. We know what he went on to do would have been wonderful."
