'Horrific' car crash claims five teenagers' lives: "The entire community is numb and in shock"

Following a "horrific" single-vehicle collision southwest of Sydney, five youngsters from the same high school have died. An 18-year-old identified as Tyrell Edwards, the only survivor of the accident, was driving the car.

Edwards has reportedly been arrested by the police on five counts of dangerous driving occasioning death. The victims, identified as Antonio Desisto, Tyrese Bechard, Summer Williams, Lily Van De Putte, and Gabriella McLennan, died when the Nissan Navara they were riding in reportedly crashed into a tree at the crossroads of East Parade and Orange Road in Buxton.

Students, family members, and friends paid a somber visit to the Buxton memorial to express their sympathy and respect, reports The Guardian. Daffodils, cards, and plush animals were carried by the mourners. Flowers and police tape encircled the tree near the crossroads where the vehicle crashed around 8 p.m. on Tuesday.

Matt Gould, Wollondilly Mayor said that the entire town was in grief. "The entire community is numb and in shock. We're a very close community, especially Buxton." Superintendent Paul Fuller described the scene as "horrific." He told ABC, "This is one of the worst accident scenes I have ever come across."

After an emergency call, emergency personnel rushed to the incident in Buxton, where they discovered a scene of destruction, according to Fire and Rescue NSW Superintendent Adam Dewberry. "Unfortunately it was evident pretty early what the outcomes were," he said.

The Crash Investigation Unit’s acting Inspector Jason Hogan told The Guardian that he has been consoling friends and family since the accident. “It must be extremely traumatic for family, friends, first responders, and the local community to have five young lives lost in such circumstances,” he said.

According to Murat Dizdar, deputy secretary of the NSW education department, it is a very upsetting and distressing day for the school, and more than 1,100 kids are being offered counseling services. “The student body is deeply impacted, this is a very, very tough day for them,” Dizdar said. “We have two separate counselling teams that are onsite at the school, one of those teams is a dedicated expert unit to support staff … that are impacted and feeling distress. These are teacher professionals who have been educating these young people since year 7.”

Police are currently “investigating all lines of enquiry,” but “preliminary investigations would indicate that speed is a possible factor in relation to this crash."

In addition, authorities are seeking to figure out how six people ended up traveling in the ute, which was only supposed to hold four passengers. The teens were all students at Picton High School and had been studying there since Year 7. Tyrell Edwards, a provisional license holder, had graduated from the school a year prior.

Jon Van Putte, father of one of the teenagers killed told the ABC that he “doesn’t hold any grudges” against the driver. “He is going to go through hell,” he added. 

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