Father and son buried together
Family to farewell loved ones after crash.
Adad and his baby boy, killed in a horror crash, will be buried in the same coffin.
Speaking for the first time, the family have described being “hollow” with grief as they come to grips with losing Chris Tobin, 51, and his son Jack, 1, after their car collided with a double-decker bus in Mt Eden.
Two-year-old survivor, Elle, has regained conciousness but remains in Starship with multiple skull fractures and a broken arm.
The family have told of the heartbreaking moment Jack died with his mother, Olivia Kronfeld, cradling him as he slipped “towards his dad”.
“Knowing that they’re together, knowing that they will be together in the coffin, that’s our blessing and
we couldn’t handle it any other way,” said Chris’ mother, Margaret Harrison, 73.
It was Olivia’s 31st birthday on Tuesday, but it will forever be remembered as the day her long-term partner, Chris, crashed headfirst into a double-decker bus on Mt Eden Rd, with their two youngest children in the back seat.
Chris, died at the scene. His baby boy, Jack, 1, succumbed to his injuries in his mother’s arms at exactly 11.11am Friday.
“Just knowing that neither one of them will be alone is . . .”, Harrison couldn’t finish her sentence and after a moment’s silence she said she felt “hollow” with grief.
As Chris and Jack lie side-by-side in a Mt Eden funeral home, their family is struggling to make sense of the car crash that claimed their lives; struggling to understand how they’re going to adjust in a world without them.
Olivia is taking each moment as it comes, said her sister Grace Kronfeld. “It still feels pretty unreal, but we are just staying strong for Olivia,” said Kronfeld. While the family rallies around Olivia, she is busy trying to hold herself together for her two daughters.
No one knows how much Elle, 2, comprehends right now, but her big sister Vivienne, 5, is old enough to know her dad isn’t coming home again.
On Thursday, Olivia dragged herself away from the hospital where her two youngest children were fighting for their lives to hold her oldest daughter’s hand as she said goodbye to her dad.
After they said goodbye, Olivia returned to Starship Hospital and was told by doctors that her son had suffered such severe injuries he would never be able to breathe on his own again.
Olivia gave herself the night to say goodbye to her curious and cheeky little boy. “She held him the whole way and talked to him and smiled at him and said it was all going to be all right,” said Grace Kronfeld. Olivia and Chris met eight years ago.
The couple and their three kids lived together in a self-contained unit beneath Olivia’s mum’s house in Mt Eden. On Tuesday, Chris had taken the day off work to celebrate Olivia’s birthday.
He cooked her breakfast in the morning with the kids and they spent the afternoon together at home.
About 3pm, Chris was asked to drop Olivia’s father back to work at a construction site in the city centre.
Elle decided she wanted to go for a drive with her dad. Chris buckled her into her carseat and Jack, who had just learned how to walk, toddled out towards the car. Somehow on the way home he lost control of the white Nissan Cube carrying his two children and dog. They crossed the median strip on Mt Eden Rd and crashed headfirst into an oncoming double-decker bus.
Early reports said Chris may have suffered a medical event moments before the crash, but police and the Coroner are still investigating.
About 6pm that night police officers knocked on Olivia’s door to tell her Chris was dead and her two youngest children were in hospital.
Over the next few days, Olivia and her family and friends divided their time between saying goodbye to Chris at the funeral home, holding Jack in the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit and supporting Elle in her recovery and Vivienne in her grief.
Now Olivia is focusing on Elle’s recovery and planning Chris and Jack’s funerals.
The Serious Crash Unit is continuing its investigation into the crash. Police are calling for any witnesses to come forward, particularly the driver of a blue BMW who was behind Chris before the crash.
A Givealittle page has been set up by Chris’ friends to support Olivia, Vivienne and Elle. As of last night, more than 500 people had donated almost $24,000 to the family. Chris and Jack’s joint funeral will be held at 2pm on Tuesday at the Manukau Memorial Gardens. They will be buried together in one coffin.
“Hold your loved ones a little bit closer tonight. Do it for Chris,” said Harrison.