A mum sent a text to her son to see if he'd got up for work not knowing he was dead.
Harry Abbey was riding his motorbike to work in Warrington when he was involved in a crash with a combine harvester. The 19-year-old died at the scene as a result of his injuries.
Two years on from the crash on July 21 2021, mum Bev has spoken of the devastating impact her son's death has had on her family. Bev and Harry's siblings Amy, Lucy and Tom have issued a plea through Cheshire Police to other young people to take road safety seriously.
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In a video shared by Cheshire Police, Harry's family have warned young motorbike riders that they're not invincible and their lives matter.
On the day Harry died, Bev said: "I immediately got on the phone and text him and said 'hi Haz are you up? You should be in work. This was about quarter past one. I know now that when I sent that text Harry was dead.
"I almost didn't want to exist after Harry went. Losing Harry has been the most traumatic experience of my life.
"That pain, it doesn't go away. It will be there all the time, you just make more room for it and learn to live alongside it."
55% of people killed on a motorbike in the last two years were aged between 17-26. 40% of those who died were teenagers, and all of them were boys.
Speaking to Cheshire Police, Bev said: "I think you have a responsibility to take care of your own life but also a responsibility to make sure that you come home to your mum and dad, the people that love you.
"It's not just that family unit – the impact it has on so many people. It's your family, your friends, even strangers – it affects everyone. The whole community. It's like a huge ripple effect.
"Just take care of yourself and do everything you can to keep safe and come home."
Harry's sister Amy said: "It's horrific to watch the whole family crumbling around [you] because the baby of the family has just been taken in a split second, gone.
"Harry thought he was invincible. You're not invincible and you lose someone over it, but then it has a huge impact on the whole family and friends. And that impact then… it doesn't ever go away.
"I know if Harry could get a message over now, I know he would be devastated at what this has done to his family."
PC Darren Daniels, Road Safety Education Officer for Cheshire Constabulary, said: “I attend schools and colleges across the county all the time educating and encouraging young people on how to stay safe while driving their cars or riding their bikes – yet serious and fatal collisions still happen.
“We want young people to understand that they are not invincible, and their life matters. It matters to those who are left behind dealing with the consequences and I hope that by Bev bravely sharing Harry’s story – and using his bike as an educational tool – we can make a real difference and help to reduce the number of young people who are needlessly killed on the county’s roads.”
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