‘This will be with them for life’: Horror crash leaves young children traumatised while their mum fights for life

The brother of a mother of five fighting for her life after a head-on collision says police did not need to put down two beloved animals caught up in the tragedy.

The brother of a woman in an induced coma after a horror head-on crash involving their camels says police should not have killed two of the beloved animals vital to their livelihoods.

Kym Healy has spoken out about the Victor Harbor Rd crash on Saturday in which his sister Alyesha Austin, 42, was driving a Ford truck with their mother Lyn Healy, 75, and two of Alyesha’s five children, Billie, 4, and Airlie, 6, as passengers.

They were towing a trailer carrying three camels when a Mitsubishi station wagon, driven by 20-year-old Ethan Hall, collided with the truck. Mr Hall died at the scene.

Mr Healy, who runs a camel ride business with his sister, told The Advertiser “it’s amazing (his loved ones) are even alive”.

“It’s been a hard and emotional few days,” he said.

While one camel was unharmed, Mr Healy said it was heartbreaking to hear that “police took it in their hands and shot the other two without a vet being there”.

“They (the police) said (the camels) were stressed and had broken things,” he said.

“I don’t think they should’ve been put down.

“I just spoke to my vet and he’s looking into it because he spoke to a police officer and he thinks legally they couldn’t do that. The camels are a part of the family,” he said.

The family had the two camels who were killed on loan from a friend from Queensland.

They had finally saved enough money to buy the animals from him, after the pandemic crippled their business, and were going to pay him on Monday.

Police were contacted for comment.

The dead camels were part of a popular local camel riding business. Picture: Facebook

Both Alyesha and her mum, Ms Healy, were rushed to Flinders Medical Centre in a critical condition, while Billie and Airlie were brought to South Coast District Hospital for a check up.

Doctors placed Alyesha in an induced coma where she continues to recover from her extensive injuries from which doctors say she will take her more than six months to recover.

“Her pelvis has quite a few breaks, her ankles are absolutely shattered … she’s got a massive gash on her arm … she’s got a bleed on the brain,” her brother said.

Lyn remains in a serious but stable condition.

“My mum’s 75 and she’s one of the toughest women you will ever met,” Mr Healy said.

“She’s got every rib in her body broken, a broken sternum, a broken wrist and a lacerate liver and the day after it happened she said to me ‘how long do your ribs take to fix Kym?’, and I said ‘a long time mum’.

“She said ‘you don’t think I’ll be out in a week to help (Alyesha’s husband) Reegen with the kids?’”

Alyesha Austin with husband Reegen Austin and children. Picture: Facebook

Reegen Austin is juggling all five of the couple’s children, including 14-month-old Darcy, Billie, Airlie, Indie, 9 and Charlie, 10.

Billie and Airlie are traumatised from the accident.

“They’re doing it very, very tough,” Mr Healy said.

“The kids are pretty sensitive.”

A day after the accident, Billie had a “bad nightmare”.

“(She) was screaming out her sister’s name that was in the car with her. This will be with them for life.

“Their grandma screaming, their mum was screaming, and then when it happened obviously my sister was falling in and out of consciousness and like jammed in there with all the breaks, screaming for help and they’re in the back strapped in their seat, listening to that.

“It’s just terrifying to think what it is going to do to them, we’re talking about a four and six year old.”

The mum-of-five is continuing to fight for life after she was in a head-on collision at Hindmarsh Valley. Picture: Facebook

Alyesha’s children have been left traumatised by the horror crash that sent their mum into an induced coma. Picture: Facebook

Mr Healy said a former nurse came to the family’s rescue “instantly”.

She went in the ambulance with the children and stayed with them until their dad came to the hospital.

The Healy family own and operate Healy Camel and Pony Farm, a farm which offers camel rides around the state and has been in operation for over 35 years.

They were driving home after a day of camel rides on Victor Harbor Beach.

Ethan Hall, the 20-year-old driver of the Mitsubishi station wagon, will be remembered as a “gorgeous kid from a beautiful family”.

Felicity Oliver has described his death as “devastating”, taking to social media to share her heartbreak.

“It’s rocked our community and has many of us asking why and how,” she wrote.

Ethan Hall, 20 was killed in a head-on collision on Victor Harbor Rd at Hindmarsh Valley on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Mr Hall’s co-worker Esther Wong expressed her shock in a Facebook post on Monday night.

“I really can’t believe you’re gone,” she said.

“I will miss you very much at work – our tourbillion (a watch mechanism) king.”

Family and friends gathered at the crash site to lay flowers and leave personal messages.

Mr Hall’s One Tree Hill church community described him as “caring, loving and passionate about basketball and his business studies,” 7NEWS reported.