‘Lovely people’: Two couples killed in horror Chiltern crash identified

The four elderly people from central NSW who died in a horror crash in Victoria’s north have been remembered as the “best community people” by a childhood friend.

The two couples from central NSW killed in a tragic collision on the Hume Freeway have been described as the “best community people” by a childhood friend.

Lake Cargelligo residents Trevor and Lorraine Breen, as well as Trevor’s sister Kerry Capes and her husband Noel, were travelling to Melbourne to visit family when they collided with a B double truck while turning onto the freeway near Chiltern on Thursday morning.

Longtime friend of the couples Paul Phillips said the “whole town was in shock” after the loss of the popular couples.

“They were just lovely people and it’s an absolute tragedy that this has happened. It hit pretty hard,” he said.

“Trevor and I ran the local football for a number of years and he and Lorraine were always involved in the local league.

“They were local identities. Trevor worked for the John Deere company for years and years and his knowledge was widely spread and sourced and Lorraine was always by his side.

“I grew up with Noel and one of the things we did was fix up old cars and drive them around. I spent a lot of my teenage years with Noel, he was a good friend of mine”.

Two of the people killed in a horror crash in Chiltern have been identified as Trevor and Lorraine Breen. Picture: Supplied

Mr Phillips, who was also the Lachlan Shire Council deputy mayor, said he expected the town to honour the two couples with a service.

One of Trevor’s friends Bruce Trounsen described him as a “champion bloke”.

“He was working at ANG as a mechanic, then went up to running the show,” Mr Trounsen said,

“I started working on farms when I was about 16, I’d go in to get parts for a tractor and he’d always had a smile on his face and was always helping.

“I ran into him five years ago and it was nice to see the bloke that you hadn’t seen for a lot of years.”

The driver of the B-double truck that collided with the two couples travelling in a silver Subaru was taken to hospital with minor upper body injuries.

The 30-year-old Chiltern man returned home on Thursday to the care of his brother.

Police said the truck driver was not believed to be at fault and that the two couples had “done the right thing” by stopping for a break before getting back on the road.