Tributes paid to mother and two children killed in Central Coast crash

A father feels “lost” after his soul mate was killed in a horror car crash on the Central Coast as well as two of their children.

A mother who died alongside two of her children in a horror crash on the Central Coast has been remembered as a “wonderful” lady whose life centred around her kids.

Samantha Smith, 32, her 10-year-old son and six-year-old daughter, were killed when their Toyota Prado veered off Wiseman‘s Ferry Rd at Central Mangrove just before 10pm on Tuesday.

The mother-of-eight had five of her kids in the car with her when she lost control, before it rolled down an embankment and struck a tree.

Police believe one of the children who was thrown out of the car and onto the road by the force of crash was struck by a passing motorist, before the man got out of his car and called Triple-0.

Samantha Smith with five of her children. Picture: Facebook

Their car veered off the road and crashed into an embankment. Picture: TNV

Ms Smith’s partner Dean Holmes spent the morning at John Hunter Hospital with the three children who survived, with close friend Adele Pate telling The Daily Telegraph the tragedy had left him feeling “lost”.

“His (Dean’s) whole world has just suddenly been lost, he’s lost soulmate,” Ms Pate said.

“She was a wonderful mum, she would do anything for her children.

“I’m going to miss her, if you were ever in any trouble she’d be the first person you would go to.

“But her kids were her main priority, it was always just her kids, she was just a fantastic mum - I‘m going to be so lost without her.”

The three children who survived Tuesday’s crash - aged nine, four and 16-months were flown to hospital, where they remain in a stable condition and under observation.

In a tragic twist of circumstance, police are investigating whether or not one of the children was already deceased when they were struck by a passing car after being ejected onto the roadway.

That driver, a 37-year-old man, was the first on scene and called emergency services.

Police Superintendent Darryl Jobson described the siutation as “harrowing”. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Swift

“This driver has come into contact with one of the children and that impact will be part of our investigation,” Superintendent Darryl Jobson said.

“Anyone who was in that man’s situation, coming across the scene, doing the right thing by contacting Triple-0, it would be an absolute harrowing and devastating experience for any person.”

The man was taken to hospital for mandatory testing but it is understood the belief of investigators is he was simply passing by at the wrong time.

Investigations into where Ms Smith and her children, who were 45 kilometres from their home in Laguna, were travelling to and from are ongoing.

“We are in the very early stages of our investigation and we will be doing our best to investigate all the circumstances to prepare our findings for the coroner, and also to provide some closure for the family involved,” Supt Jobson said.

“I’d like to put out a message to any members of the community who may have been in the area, who may have seen something of interest to us involving this vehicle, please come forward.”

A badly damaged 4WD is towed away from the scene. Picture: TNV

Supt Jobson said the three surviving children had to be freed from the wreckage and that the crash scene had devastated even the most seasoned of police.

“There is no doubt they are shaken and unsettled by this,” he said.

“Those on scene in what is a challenging and confronting situation have gone beyond the call of duty.

“I couldn’t be more proud of the work our first responders have done.”

Investigations by the Metropolitan Crash Investigation Unit are ongoing and a report will be prepared for the coroner.