Distraught father says ‘lightning strikes twice’ after shedding son in automotive crash – 20 years after sufferer’s brother died in Boxing Day tsunami
A devastated father has spoken of his heartache after losing a son in a car crash – nearly 20 years to the day after another of his boys died in the Boxing Day tsunami.
Thomas Hurren, 36, was killed this week when his car veered off a dual carriageway and rolled over following a collision with another vehicle.
In 2004, his brother James was just 22 and holidaying in Thailand when he was swept up in the tsunami, which killed over 200,000 people.
The brother’s father, Dale, told the Mail: ‘I can’t get my head around the fact that I’ve lost yet another son. They say lightning doesn’t strike twice but it has for me.
‘I’ve had 20 Christmases without James and now history’s repeated itself.’
Thomas, a labourer, was driving to his mother’s house in Hopton, Norfolk, on the A47 when the fatal collision happened between his Range Rover Evoque and a Vauxhall Astra at around 8.40pm.
Paramedics attended but Thomas was declared dead at the scene. A post-mortem examination is due to take place in the next few days.
The driver of the Vauxhall, a man in his 20s, was arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving and drug driving.
Thomas Hurren, 36, was killed this week when his car veered off a dual carriageway and rolled over following a collision with another vehicle
Dale Hurren (centre) with sons Thomas (left) and Daniel (right)
The road was closed for 15 hours while police investigated the circumstances of the accident.
Mr Hurren snr, 66, whose middle son Daniel is 40, said the Evoque was a ‘very strong car’ but added ‘unfortunately for Thomas it rolled over and landed on the roof’.
He said: ‘I haven’t come to terms with it yet. I’m still numb with the thought that I’ve lost another son and I’m probably still in a state of shock.
‘I can’t seem to accept it but in the next few days it will hit me like a steam train.
‘People ask me do I still think about James. I think of him 24/7. It’s been 20 years but it feels like 20 hours. It’s a wound and a pain that never goes away. You have to deal with it as best as you can.’
Daniel is staying with his mother, Debbie, to provide comfort to each other over the festive season.
His father said he is being supported by his ‘diamond of a wife’, Jules, 59, a hairdresser.
James, the eldest of the three brothers, was a promising young footballer who played for Yarmouth Town and worked as an assistant manager at the North Walsham branch of Lloyds TSB.
He and a friend quit their jobs to go on a six-month adventure when disaster struck in Phi Phi Islands, an island group near Phuket.
James Hurren was killed whilst holidaying in Thailand by the tragic Boxing Day tsunami in 2004
Father Dale Hurren has spoken of his heartache after losing Thomas son in a car crash – nearly 20 years to the day after brother James died in the Boxing Day tsunami
Speaking in 2014, Debbie paid tribute to him, saying: ‘He wasn’t just my son and he wasn’t just their brother, he was so much more to all of us and many others.
‘He took me shopping and was a very caring son. We had great conversations and he was always there for his brothers.’
A Norfolk Constabulary spokeswoman said: ‘The incident happened on the southbound carriageway of the A47 between Hopton and Gorleston, when a blue Vauxhall Astra collided with a white Range Rover Evoque.
‘Sadly, the driver of the Range Rover, a man in his 30s, died at the scene.
‘The driver of the Vauxhall, a man in his 20s, has been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving and drug driving. He has been taken to Great Yarmouth Police Investigation Centre for questioning.
‘Officers would like to speak to anyone who may have witnessed the collision or the manner of driving prior to the collision happening.’
A GoFundMe page to help Thomas’s parents has been set up here.
