Taxi Driver Online

Wife of Polish driver who killed Irish family in taxi crash suicide blames herself for tragedy


THE wife of a Polish taxi driver who drove into the car of an Irish family holidaying in the UK, killing three of them, has said that she blames herself for the tragedy.

The heartbroken Cork-based family said they are still trying to come to terms with the car crash in Devon, England, on July 6, 2012.

An inquest yesterday heard of father-of-two Marek Wojciechowski's final movements before he smashed into the car of the Twomey family.

Wojciechowski wrote a four-page suicide note just minutes before the head-on collision.

His wife, Agnieszka Wojciechowski, said she blamed herself as her husband couldn't cope with their separation, following repeated arguments and mounting financial problems.

Last May, Con Twomey (39) died 10 months after suffering horrific injuries when his family's Volkswagen Golf was hit by Mr Wojciechowski (26) outside Torquay.

Con, a talented hurler for Meelin GAA club in Co Cork, died after failing to recover from head, neck and chest injuries sustained in the crash while on holiday with his wife, Elber (37), child and unborn baby.

The family had chosen a driving holiday in the UK, thinking it would be safer for Elber – who was pregnant at the time – than flying to a sun destination.

Elber is now the only survivor of the horrific collision.

The couple's child, Oisin (16 months), died shortly after the collision.

Elber's unborn child, Elber Marie, could not be saved despite emergency surgery in Derriford Hospital outside Plymouth. She was due to have been born last December.

Elber, a highly respected teacher in north Cork, suffered severe back and pelvic injuries in the crash and it was several weeks before she could be told of the enormous tragedy.

Her injuries were so severe she has been unable to return to work as a teacher in a Newmarket school.

Relatives said the family remain "absolutely heartbroken" over the tragedy.

A Devon inquest yesterday heard that Mr Wojciechowski had left a four-page suicide note.

In an interview with Devon police after the collision, his distraught wife said she felt responsible. Mrs Wojciechowski told police her husband was not handling his problems.

"Marek wasn't coping well. He didn't kill himself. I killed him. I took hope away from him. I took everything away from him," she said.

source: http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/wi ... 64909.html

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

A sad affair all round.

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http://wingsoverscotland.com/ http://www.newsnetscotland.com/

That is so tragic on so many levels.

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IDFIMH

Mother who lost entire family in crash behind garda suicide awareness initiative

Elber Twomey’s husband Connie (39), her 16-month-old son Oisin and unborn daughter Elber Marie were killed as a result of the horrific car smash in 2012.

Polish taxi-driver Marek Wojciechowski rammed into the their vehicle while they were on holiday in Devon.

The 38-year-old now plans to encourage the creation of specific suicide awareness/prevention training among gardai so that similar tragedies may be prevented.

In an initiative supported by Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald, Ms Twomey will speak to senior officers at the Garda Training College in Templemore next month about including this training as part of the force’s primary in-service programme.

Minister Fitzgerald discussed the plans with Ms Twomey and her brother, Tomas, in a 20 minute meeting in Dublin last Wednesday.Ms twomey has dedicated her time since the devastating incident to researching best practices worldwide used by authorities when dealing with potentially suicidal drivers.

While specific training was given to police in some regions of Australia and the US, Ms Twomey found there was no definitive procedure in place in Ireland or in the UK. Ms Twomey told the Irish Examiner that the campaign was a source of comfort to her.

“I wouldn’t wish my life on anyone else.”“It would also help the gardai in dealing with such stressful situations,” she said, adding that she hoped that the gardai would adopt a programme that the British police could then follow. Up to €80,000 in fundraising in memory of Ms Twomey's family is expected to be reached in the coming months. There is a plan in place to transfer these monies to various suicide charities. -

See more at: http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/ne ... Y5oZK.dpuf

_________________
Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin