A mother and daughter have died while a father is fighting for life after a shocking crash in the state’s Mid North.
The Clark family was travelling through an intersection at Everard Central, near Blyth in the state’s Mid North, when their Honda collided with a van.
The crash occurred around 5.20pm on Tuesday at the intersection of Templeton Rd and Blyth Rd.
Mother Cynthia Clark and her daughter Jaquie Clark lost their lives, while father, 86-year-old John Clark, is in hospital suffering critical injuries.
Jaquie, the 54-year-old driver, and Cynthia, 84, who was a passenger, died at the scene.
Mr Clark was taken to the Royal Adelaide Hospital.
The driver of the van, a 28-year-old man, suffered minor injuries while his 26-year-old female passenger sustained serious injuries and is also fighting for life. Both were flown to the Royal Adelaide Hospital.
Mr and Ms Clark lived in Snowtown and were loved members of the community and patrons of the local golf club for more than 30 years before they moved to Clare.
Jaquie lived in Jamestown and has a brother who lives in Western Australia.
Sue Fountain, a current patron of the club, said the fatal crash was very sad and the family was lovely.
“I’m sure everyone is feeling this, it’s pretty rotten,” Ms Fountain said.
“Their daughter Jaquie was my neighbour for a time … I knew her quite well.”
Ms Clark worked as nurse at the local hospital.
Ms Fountain said the intersection where the accident occurred was notorious for crashes.
“On that corner, a few years before a couple of kids got hit,” she said.
“I don’t understand how it happened, the main road is tar but the side road is dirt.
“You must have seen a dirt cloud or something.”
Superintendent Darren Fielke said while investigations were ongoing police believe the crash may have been a result of a “mistake”.
“It really drives home the impact of these collisions when we know that the lives lost in this particular incident were a mother and a daughter,” he said.
“Not only that, we also have two people now fighting for life in the Royal Adelaide Hospital.
“This has to stop. We have to start using the road responsibly. We have to make good choices. We have to start following the road rules. We have to share the road.”
Mr Fielke said the Clare community will be devastated at the loss of Ms Clark and her daughter Jaquie.
“It’s an absolute tragedy,” he said.
“The Clare community and the surrounding districts are going to feel the ripple affect on this particular tragedy.
“Losing two members of one family is almost unfathomable. It’s going to rock some people no doubt about that.
“It serves as a reminder to people in regional areas that they need to be ever vigilant on these roads.”
Matti Wilson, president of the Snowtown golf club, said he was shocked when he received a call this morning to tell him who was involved in the fatal crash on Tuesday.
“It’s a real kick in the butt when it happens to someone you know,” Mr Wilson said.
“They were good community members, heavily involved in the golf club and we still see them a couple times a year.”
Templeton Rd was closed for several hours and reopened overnight.
Major Crash Investigators attended the scene to investigate the cause of the crash.
The women’s deaths are the 95th and 96th life lost on South Australian roads compared with 59 at the same time last year.
This crash comes after a 86-year-old man was killed after a single vehicle crash at Felixstow.
Police and emergency services rushed to the intersection of Ashleigh Ave and Payneham Rd about 10.30pm after reports a car had smashed into a fence.
>>> Read full article>>>
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source : The Advertiser – https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/states-mid-north-fatal-victims-revealed-as-mother-and-daughter-father-fighting-for-life/news-story/1cdfd875488e353e3a37bb452f065a08