Hunter Valley bus crash: Couple whose wedding day ended in horror smash that killed 10 guests appear at moving public memorial to the victims
- Victims of horror bush crash remembered
- NSW premier comforted wedding couple
- READ MORE: Inside the wedding before horror crash
Victims, survivors and first responders have been honoured at a public memorial in Singleton for those killed in the Hunter Valley bus crash.
The grief shared by the families of those whose loved ones died in the NSW Hunter Valley bus crash is a ‘ripple on a pond affecting all that it touches’, a memorial has been told.
Saturday’s public gathering was held in Singleton, the country town home to many who lost their lives.
The couple whose wedding those killed were attending, Mitchell Gaffney and Madeleine Edsell, were also seen at the service, at one stage comforted by NSW Premier Chris Minns.
NSW Premier Chris Minns comforts Mitchell Gaffney and Madeleine Edsell, the couple whose wedding victims of the Singleton bus crash were attending, after laying flowers during a public memorial service
Victims, survivors and first responders were among hundreds of people who gathered at a public memorial in Singleton, in northern NSW on Saturday to pay their respects to those who lost their lives in a horror bush in the Hunter Valley three months ago
Ten wedding guests were killed and another 25 were injured when their coach rolled near Greta in the Hunter Valley late on June 11.
The crash, on the bend of a highway on-ramp, occurred late at night as guests were being driven home from the reception.
It was the worst road disaster in Australia for nearly 30 years.
Casey Donovan sang at the public memorial for those killed in the Hunter Valley bus crash.
Nadene McBride, who coached the Singleton Roosterettes, and her 22-year-old daughter Kyah, who played in the team, were among those killed.
Nadene’s sister Helen Arthur said the tragedy had forever changed the family’s lives.
‘Our lives are unrecognisable,’ she said.
‘Our hearts are broken. Our grief and emotions are all encompassing.’
The grief the family felt was not ours alone, Ms Arthur said.
‘I see it as a ripple on a pond affecting all that it touches.’
Jackie Varasdi, the mother of 29-year-old victim Zach Bray, also addressed the other families ‘suffering the deep loss of our beautiful 10’.
‘I hope like my family, you also find comfort knowing that they’re all together wherever that may be,’ she said.
Roosterettes captain, 29-year-old Tori Cowburn, was remembered for her zest for life, love of family, and her ‘crazy nature, too’.
‘With every passing moment, every minute of every day, the love I have for you my darling girl in my heart will forever stay,’ her mother Kay Welsh told a solemn crowd.
NSW Premier Chris Minns joined those attending the Singleton memorial for victims of the bus crash.
Victims of the crash (pictured) addressed the crowd at the ceremony as people mourned those who died
Premier Chris Minns said the families and friends of those killed had been through challenges ‘most of us can’t begin to imagine’ and noted the extraordinary outpouring of support within the community.
‘Our emergency service workers our healthcare workers treated the injured and they treated those who passed with kindness and empathy, as if they were treating a member of their own personal family,’ he said.
Following the service, the showground hosted a free communal barbecue in partnership with local charities while sprigs of gum leaves were handed out.
The Hunter Valley Bus Tragedy Fund, administered by Rotary, closed last month after raising close to $1.5 million.
The NSW government donated $100,000 with the funds expected to assist those affected by the crash.
Bus driver Brett Andrew Button, 59, faces 62 charges over the crash and remains before the courts.
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