Hunter Valley bus crash victim Tori Cowburn’s family leave roadside tribute

Grieving relatives of the Hunter Valley bus crash victim and popular country football player Tori Cowburn have wept as they laid flowers at a roadside memorial.

Mrs. Cowburn was one of ten wedding guests killed when the bus they were traveling in overturned Greta at about 11:30pm on Sunday.

Relatives left three large bunches of flowers with a heartfelt card at the crash site on Wine Country Drive near the Hunter Expressway exit on Wednesday.

The card read: “To our sweet Torzy girl. You are and will remain in our hearts forever. Our world will never be the same without you. I love you mom, Gaz & family xxxxxx’

Ms Crowburn played for the Singleton Roosters Australian Football Club, as did Madeleine Edsell and Mitchell Gaffney whose wedding she attended this weekend.

A card The card read: “To our sweet Torzy girl. You are and will remain in our hearts forever. Our world will never be the same without you. I love you mom, Gaz & family xxxxxx’

Lynan and Andrew Scott, who also played for the Roosters, were killed in the traffic crash, leaving behind two children.

Tori Cowburn was one of ten wedding guests killed in the Hunter Valley bus crash

Local mother Krystal Hollis, 32, collapsed at the scene of the bus crash on Wednesday when she thought of the orphans, both under five years old.

Ms Hollis said that after laying flowers on the grounds she would forever find it “eerie and gloomy” when she drove by, which she said she often did in the evenings after shifts.

“I feel for the two little kids,” Mrs. Hollis said. “They’ve got the rest of their lives… they’re going to miss so much.”

One of the paramedics who was first to the scene of the bus crash has told NSW Health Minister Ryan Park that the aftermath was the worst of his career.

The experienced paramedic told him: ‘I’ve been doing this job for 15 years and I’ve never seen a scene like this,’ Mr Park said at the scene of the accident on Wednesday.

The minister called the place a “catastrophic scene” and “surreal” for aid workers on Monday morning.

Toro Cowburn’s family left three large bunches of flowers with a heartfelt card at the crash site on Wine Country Drive near the Hunter Expressway exit on Wednesday (pictured)

He said that while he had not met any of the victims’ families, he had heard about resident physician Bec Mullen.

“We lost one ourselves,” Mr. Park said. ‘[She] had a great career ahead of him… and was already making a big difference to the community.”

Mr Park praised paramedics, saying their response to the tragedy ‘shows that even in our most tragic and darkest days, the human spirit’ shines through.

“They go above and beyond,” he said. ‘They are all focused on the best possible care.’

Mr Park said NSW’s donation of $100,000 to victims and families showed that the community would need help for a ‘very long time’.

Mrs Crowburn played for the Singleton Roosters football club, as did Madeleine Edsell and Mitchell Gaffney whose wedding she attended this weekend. Relatives are in the photo

The chartered 57-seater coach transported guests from Mrs. Edsell and Mr. Gaffney’s wedding at Lovedale’s Wandin Estate winery to accommodation in nearby Singleton.

Seven of the guests who died – Nadene “Nads” McBride and her daughter Kyah McBride, the Scotts, Mrs. Cowburn and Rebecca Mullen – were from Singleton.

Angus Craig of Queensland, Zachary Bray of Byron Bay and Darcy Bullman were also killed.

Bus driver Brett Button, 58, has been charged with 10 counts of dangerous driving leading to death and was granted bail when he appeared in Cessnock local court on Tuesday.