Recovered/Located UK - Cardiff - 3 Women & 2 Men Missing, leaving nightclub approx 2am, Newport, 4 March 2023

[3point5]

Strongly disagree with this. One of the mothers kept calling and calling the police on Saturday and was told to stop calling. That is disgraceful.

Obviously not sending helicopters up for every missing person - that is hyperbolic. But it wouldn’t have taken much resource to trace the phones on the first day - especially with FIVE lives in question.

I just think we don't know enough yet to try and appoint blame. <modsnip>

Im sure the woman in question is a very sensible person. But then that's also a line that we hear from most parents. I know my mum would have said exactly the same about me if I went missing at that age, because it was true, as far as she knew.

 

[ifindedout]

I don't believe this article has been posted, but according to the Sun, Sophie was able to cry out for help, despite having a broken neck and spine:

Survivor of horror crash called for help for 2 days next to three dead friends

A FRANTIC mum searching for her daughter — unaware she was trapped in the wreckage of a fatal car crash — drove past the scene three times. Anna Cerowicz said 20-year-old Sophie Russon was lying fo…

www.thesun.co.uk

 

[Seni]

Am supposing that the injuries sustained by survivors must have been very bad, probably very bad fractures that can totally immobilise you.

Suppose that the two survivors are most likely under sedation

 

[LadyL]

I'm glad they've been found. Very sad though.

 

[rightsaidfred]

Well yes, 3 friends all missing. No one has heard from any of them? Last seen getting in a car with 2 blokes?

If the night had gone slightly differently, they could all have woken up in the Trecco Bay caravan, without phone chargers. Their families would have had exactly the same information as they did in the initial stages of them being missing.

Three friends

 

[AnalyticalMind]

yeah thats what I meant sorry. The passenger looks kinda chunky imo

To me it looks like the driver is bent over, and has a shaved head, and looking at the last pic if Rafel and Darcy from Snapchat he has a shaved head. I agree the passenger looks quite big built to be Darcy, and she had a white patterned top on in the same pic mentioned previous.

I just can't stop thinking about this awful tragedy, being someone who done very similar things at that age, going out drinking, jumping in cars from place to place on weekend evenings... and now having a daughter who is nearing that same age... it has resonated with me, and I'm devastated for all of the families involved. Even trying to imagine for one split second what they've been going through since their families first realised something wasn't right is too much to contemplate. Just so horrifically sad.

 

[bringmeacupoft]

How sad. More precious lives gone too soon.

To me it looks like the driver is bent over, and has a shaved head, and looking at the last pic if Rafel and Darcy from Snapchat he has a shaved head. I agree the passenger looks quite big built to be Darcy, and she had a white patterned top on in the same pic mentioned previous.

I just can't stop thinking about this awful tragedy, being someone who done very similar things at that age, going out drinking, jumping in cars from place to place on weekend evenings... and now having a daughter who is nearing that same age... it has resonated with me, and I'm devastated for all of the families involved. Even trying to imagine for one split second what they've been going through since their families first realised something wasn't right is too much to contemplate. Just so horrifically sad.

I thought that to about the shaved head, but he had a very close cut with hair, whereas if that was a head in the CCTV I think the person would have to have had no hair.

 

[bringmeacupoft]

It doesn't take all that much brush or shrubbery to hide a vehicle. Maybe they weren't going fast enough to leave tire tracks in the dirt?

Oh yeah I’m not disputing anything, just stating it, highlighting that they were sat there for 2 days on a busy a route.

 

[dunkley]

IMAGE: It is believed the car carrying the five young people collided with this tree.

Anger after revelation it took police 48 hours to find crash victims

Police were facing questions last night about how five young people lay undiscovered for two days with search parties claiming they discovered the grim accident in Cardiff 'before authorities'.

www.dailymail.co.uk

It angers me that the media seems to constantly leap on any opportunity to criticise and <modsnip> the police.
"Why did it take so long for the police to find them?"
There were, according to this article, 200 people out searching. Some of whom were within yards of the vehicle.
Why didn't *they* find it?
Sometimes there is just NO blame - fate, and circumstances, conspire to confound all logic and expected outcomes. It happens.
Those 200 people searching had far MORE chance of finding them, and they didn't. It's no more their fault than it is the police.
Oh, and those 200 people searching probably numbered 175 MORE than the entire number of officers in Cardiff that night.

Just an awful tragedy.

 

[HongKongPhooey]

It angers me that the media seems to constantly leap on any opportunity to criticise and <modsnip> the police.
"Why did it take so long for the police to find them?"
There were, according to this article, 200 people out searching. Some of whom were within yards of the vehicle.
Why didn't *they* find it?
Sometimes there is just NO blame - fate, and circumstances, conspire to confound all logic and expected outcomes. It happens.
Those 200 people searching had far MORE chance of finding them, and they didn't. It's no more their fault than it is the police.
Oh, and those 200 people searching probably numbered 175 MORE than the entire number of officers in Cardiff that night.

Just an awful tragedy.

We just recently re-watched all the “Missing” episodes on bbc. Strongly recommend it to anyone interested in learning about how police operate in missing person cases.

What was clear to me, was that they have to operate within strict protocols. So they first determine if the missing person/s would be high risk, medium risk, low risk. High risk would be for example that they are thought to be with someone who could cause them harm (an ex partner with a history of DV), or they are vulnerable through health reasons etc. The helicopter is called in based on risk - I think they said it’s £15 million a year so cost is an issue. The phone tracing is requested for high risk.

Based on the info in those programmes, the youngsters would not have been classed as high risk initially.

Very tough call for the duty officer who has to make that decision, but I imagine following protocol protects them at least to a point emotionally.

 

[rhino]

It doesn't take all that much brush or shrubbery to hide a vehicle. Maybe they weren't going fast enough to leave tire tracks in the dirt?

Given the severity of the injuries, I’d personally be surprised if significant speed was not a contributory factor. Does anyone know what the speed limit is on this stretch of road?

 

[dunkley]

Given the severity of the injuries, I’d personally be surprised if significant, if not excessive speed, was a contributory factor. Does anyone know what the speed limit is on this stretch of road?

I believe it is 70 on the dual carriageway, coming down to 30 just before, and on, the roundabout.
Looking at the photographs I am guessing there was just no attempt to brake, or drive the bend.
TFF, IMO.

 

[Normal Norm]

I believe it is 70 on the dual carriageway, coming down to 30 just before, and on, the roundabout.
Looking at the photographs I am guessing there was just no attempt to brake, or drive the bend.
TFF, IMO.

The approaching step-down from 70 mph to 30 mph is indicated on signs 300, 200 and 100 metres before the 30 mph zone starts. I agree with your guess.

 

[Nikynoo]

<modsnip - quoted post and response to it removed>

IMO the car, not accounting for the curve in the road, hit the kerb, was airborne for a while and came to an (abrupt) stop when it hit the tree.

 

[SouthAussie]

An update on Sophie's condition ....

"On Monday, a family member of Miss Russon told ITV News that she was "through the worst of it" and "pulling through following surgery". "


And vigils for Darcy, Eve, and Rafel .....

"People continued to visit the site throughout Monday with a fireworks display taking place in the evening in memory of those who died, with a further vigil reportedly taking place on Tuesday evening at the scene."

https://www.itv.com/news/wales/2023-03-07/full-timeline-of-events-in-fatal-crash-after-group-vanished-on-night-out

 

[rightsaidfred]

Cardiff car crash: police confirm four separate missing persons reports made

Gwent and South Wales police also confirm more than 46 hours passed between last sighting and wreckage being found

www.theguardian.com

 

[Cherwell]

I don't think anyone is saying the police should have launched a search immediately, but that it should have been upgraded to medium risk by the Saturday evening. Then they might have been found 24 hours earlier. That may not have saved any lives, but greatly reduced the suffering of the survivors.

 

[Normal Norm]

Cardiff car crash: police confirm four separate missing persons reports made

Gwent and South Wales police also confirm more than 46 hours passed between last sighting and wreckage being found

www.theguardian.com

Interesting figures from this article:

"In 2021 Gwent police dealt with 2,869 missing persons incidents, according to data obtained from a freedom of information request. Of those, 408 were assessed as high risk, 2,217 as medium, 244 as low. South Wales police said it received on average more than 8,000 missing person reports every year – more than 20 a day."

 

[DianaWW]

I don't think anyone is saying the police should have launched a search immediately, but that it should have been upgraded to medium risk by the Saturday evening. Then they might have been found 24 hours earlier. That may not have saved any lives, but greatly reduced the suffering of the survivors.

From what I've read, they weren't actually reported missing until Saturday evening.

'In a statement, South Wales Police said the group was the subject of inquiries "by Gwent Police following a missing person report made during the evening of Saturday 4 March".
"A subsequent missing person report in respect of one of the individuals was made to South Wales Police on Sunday," it added.'

Cardiff car crash: Mum criticises two-day search to find group

Family and friends question why it took two days to find five who went missing after night out.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Cherwell]

From what I've read, they weren't actually reported missing until Saturday evening.

'In a statement, South Wales Police said the group was the subject of inquiries "by Gwent Police following a missing person report made during the evening of Saturday 4 March".
"A subsequent missing person report in respect of one of the individuals was made to South Wales Police on Sunday," it added.'

Then if that's the case it should have been acted upon as medium risk, since it was well past the time it could be dismissed as sleeping over and nursing hangovers.