Christine Potes was out working errands for her nephew’s tenth celebration on Aug. 10 round midday when she was killed in a horrific chain-reaction crash in Oshawa, Ont.
“The last communication I have in my phone with her was like, ‘Is this fruit tray OK?’ She was picking things up for the party,” recalled her youthful sister Katrina Potes.
“I just remember shortly after texting her, getting a call from Matty, a missed call from him, and I gave him a call back, and I just could hear that something was so wrong,” she mentioned.
Potes’ longtime accomplice Matty Biljentina was asleep when police got here knocking on the door of the couple’s Oshawa residence.
“They told me what happened and I just kind of lost it … I said, what hospital? And they said, she’s not at the hospital. She died on impact,” he mentioned.
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In keeping with Durham Regional Police, reviews indicated a black Mercedes sedan was travelling southbound on Ritson Highway South “at a high rate of speed.”
Because the Mercedes entered the curb lane it struck a white Nissan being operated by Potes.
“The force of the initial impact caused the driver of the Nissan to lose control, striking a Chevy Orlando, which then caught on fire. The white Nissan then struck a Honda and Dodge Caravan, which also caught fire.”
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A information launch by police added, “The Mercedes continued southbound after the initial collision, crossing the northbound lanes and careening onto the property on the northeast corner. As it crossed the property it struck the rear corner of a chip-truck causing the awning to collapse on a male party that was awaiting food. The Mercedes then crashed into a light pole.”
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Potes was pronounced deceased on the scene and a number of other others had been taken to hospital with non-life-threatening accidents.
“She was kind of corralled. She was at a red light. There were cars all around her. She was literally defenceless. Had nowhere to go,” mentioned Biljentina.
He broke the information to Potes’ two sisters.
“It’s such a horror just hearing what happened and just the devastating carnage of the entire accident. Just the news just kept getting worse. She died. Nine cars were involved. You wonder what must have happened. Just so many questions and, you know, things like, ‘Where do we go? What hospital do we go to?’ We don’t. Straight to the morgue. She had no chance,” mentioned Potes’ older sister, Samantha Paul.
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“It was the force, the speed that he was going at. There was no way she would have survived that. And to know that she died so violently and that we couldn’t see her after, we couldn’t see her,” mentioned Katrina Potes.
On Monday, almost a full month for the reason that crash, the driving force of the Mercedes, Lorne Michael Fade Nicholson, 40, of Toronto, was charged with harmful operation of a conveyance inflicting loss of life, 4 counts of harmful operation of a conveyance inflicting bodily hurt and leaving the scene of an accident whereas failing to offer a reputation or supply help.
The household is now planning to sue the driving force.
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“The family’s given notice of their intention to bring a lawsuit. And, of course, the purpose of the lawsuit is to try and achieve some change and try and achieve some justice,” mentioned lawyer Justin Linden.
“Based on the press reports, this was a horrific accident. Car unfortunately caught fire. Someone was actually trying to save her while she burned. It was just a horrific, horrific scene. Left behind two very close sisters. She left behind her life partner. So yes, we’re bringing a lawsuit. Yes, we intend to achieve some justice,” he added.
Via the heartbreak, Biljentina mentioned he finds some consolation within the many recollections he shared with Potes.
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“We used to pick on each other a lot and it was always fun. It was just, you know, picking out each other’s quirks and just hearing her laugh, making her laugh was the best,” he mentioned.
Potes’ two sisters mentioned they misplaced their mom a number of months in the past and now to lose Christine has been devastating.
They described their sister as an avid runner, journey fanatic, and foodie who additionally liked music.
“She was an inspiration to me because she was always somebody who did what she wanted. You know, everything she was doing was because she wanted to do it and never because she was forced to do it,” mentioned Katrina Potes, including, “She just loved everything about life.“
On Tuesday, Sept. 10, family and friends are holding a candlelight vigil to honour Potes at Lakeview Park Beach at 8 p.m.
Her younger sister hopes the crash serves as a wake-up call to other drivers about the importance of road safety.
“We need to do better as drivers, as a society, we need to respect each other more and to know that, like we have power, we’re wielding power when we go behind the wheel, when we jump in the car, like you’re not only responsible for yourself, it’s other people too.”
© 2024 Ontario Chronicle, a division of Corus Leisure Inc.
