Mother’s heartbreaking messages after twin daughters are killed in horrific crash between Perth and Kalgoorlie
The heartbroken mother of twins who died in a horror accident has broken her silence with a touching tribute to her ‘precious angels’.
Twin sisters Macey and Riley, aged seven, died when the Toyota Camry they were driving left the road about halfway between Perth and Kalgoorlie and plowed into a tree.
The girls’ mother, Rachel van Oyen, 31, was at the wheel when the vehicle left the Great Eastern Highway in Carrabin at around 11am on February 18.
The twins, who were both wearing seat belts, were pronounced dead at the scene while their mother was rushed to Merredin Hospital.
Ms Oyen escaped the crash without serious injuries, but has since shared her grief in a social media post, claiming everything had changed ‘in the blink of an eye’.
Twin sisters Macey and Riley, aged seven (pictured, with their mother Rachel van Oyen) died when the Toyota Camry they were traveling in plowed into a tree about halfway between Perth and Kalgoorlie.
The girls’ mother, Rachel van Oyen, 31, was at the wheel when the vehicle came off the Great Eastern Highway (pictured) in Carrabin about 11am on Sunday.
“My whole world fell apart, disappeared,” Ms. Oyen said.
‘There are still no words to describe the emptiness and pain I am drowning in. It should have been me. What I would give to take your place, my precious girls.
‘I have never felt so helpless as that day. All I could do was try to hold you for a moment, even though you both had grown wings.”
Ms Oyen said her twins were her “absolute world” and her girls gave her strength and a reason to live.
The heartbroken mother explained that she felt “so lost” at not having her daughters in the family home and that she was “really sorry” for the accident.
“The silence is killing me and your absence is destroying us in ways we can’t imagine. I am so lost,” Ms. Oyen wrote.
“I hope you both know how sorry I am. All I can do is try to get through each day knowing that it will never be filled with your beautiful faces.
“Your time on earth has been far too short and I’m not ready to say goodbye yet. Nobody is.’
The 31-year-old promised her twin girls that she would not let the pain of their loss consume her forever and that she would spread the kindness and joy they gave to others.
Ms Oyen’s mother, Lisa Lisa Blair, thanked their family and friends for their support on social media.
“(We) will be away for some time while our family experiences this unspeakable tragedy,” she posted on social media,” Ms. Blair wrote.
‘Thank you for your understanding and for your love for us during these dark days.
“We are completely broken.”
It is understood the trio were visiting relatives in Kalgoorie and on their way home to Perth when they crashed.
Ms Oyen said she had been drowning in pain and emptiness since the crash. Other family members have described the twins as ‘vibrant, bold and beautiful’ with ‘so much life and promise ahead’
The girls’ grandmother described them as “sun souls” in a 2020 Facebook post.
She lovingly described her granddaughters as “beautiful, funny, sassy, magical little twins who “bring so much joy to their entire family.”
a GofundMe was founded by family member Phillip van Oyen, who described the girls as ‘vibrant, sassy and beautiful’ with ‘so much life and promise ahead’.
“Macey and Riley have brought us so much love and joy, and as difficult as it is without them, our lives are made better by their short existence,” Oyen said.
“The impact those two little lives had on our family is immeasurable, and the weight of their absence is felt every day.”
Mr Oyen explained that all money raised will be given to the twins’ mother to help her grieve and rebuild her life.
“There is nothing we can do to change this devastating situation, but we want to try to make Rachel’s life a little easier as she grieves and rebuilds,” Mr Oyen wrote.
‘Rachel, who supported and cared for her two girls all their lives, gave her everything! As she begins to cope with this tragic loss, we want to ensure that Rachel is well cared for and that she can slowly live her life without Macey and Riley.”
At the time of writing, the fund received 341 donations totaling $37,450, with a goal of raising $70,000.