Hunter Valley bus crash: How Singleton is coping after 10 killed
With seven of the victims hailing from the Singleton - and another three with close links - some residents were planning on holding private get-togethers in their homes and backyards.
Newcastle
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Invisible rings of support were beginning to privately wrap around the resilient townsfolk of Singleton entering the endless tunnels of personal grief following the Hunter bus tragedy.
With seven of the victims hailing from the proud Hunter Valley mining town - and another three with close links - some residents were planning on holding private get-togethers in their homes and backyards.
It will be a chance for many to speak privately about their grief and mental health and allow many others who have quietly offered their support to be a shoulder to lean on.
“They are doing it in people‘s homes and out of the spotlight and that is more evidence of the strength of the community to be a private support to friends and loved ones,” Upper Hunter MP David Layzell said.
“Those rings of support in our community will become wider and wider.”
Singleton woke on Tuesday to the second day after the Hunter wedding bus crash - some townsfolk already believe the tsunami of grief which will envelope the place will be so large that it could produce a defining historical line involving pre-crash and post-crash moments in time.
They know seven of those who formally remained “unaccounted for” were locals and another three had close links with the town.
And it was still unclear how many of those physically injured - many of whom remained in hospital with serious injuries - and other mentally-scarred survivors bus passengers also hail from an area once only known as the epicentre of coal mining in the Hunter Valley.
“There are not going to be many people who this won’t touch in a very personal way, whether they know people directly or indirectly,” Singleton mayor Sue Moore said on Tuesday.
Eight of the crash victims had a close affinity with the local Aussie Rules club, the Singleton Roosters and Roosterettes.
The club has set up a gofundme campaign to raise funds for those affected and the Sydney Swans are planning on wearing black arm bands this weekend as much of the town continued to be in shock about the level of the loss.
Some local businesses remained closed on Tuesday as owners and operators took time out to support families and friends.
Mr Layzell said there were no plans afoot of a vigil or memorial but believed one could be held later in the week if the community - and the families of victims - felt the need for it.
“We are still in that stage of saying we are here, we are not going to knock on your door and intrude on the grief process you and your family are dealing with,” Mr Layzell said.
“But we are here if you need us.”
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