The groom who is fighting for his life in hospital after a devastating crash on the way to his wedding in the NSW Hunter Valley has been identified as John Barrett – a 57-year-old father of four from Cessnock
Barrett was just hours away from marrying his fiancée Michelle Murphy when the minibus carrying members of the wedding party veered off the road and rolled seven times down an embankment at Mount View.
Barrett was trapped inside the wreckage for 45 minutes as emergency crews worked desperately to free him. He suffered critical injuries to his limbs and was airlifted to John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle alongside a 60-year-old man who sustained serious head injuries. Four others from the wedding party suffered minor injuries and were taken by road ambulance for treatment.
Barrett and his family are well known in the local community and are regulars at Bistro Molines, where the wedding reception was due to be held.
It has now been revealed that the heartbreak of the crash comes just months after Barrett was diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND), a cruel and progressive condition that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord and saw Barrett confined to a wheelchair.
His family had recently launched a fundraiser in his name to support leading MND specialist Professor Dominic Rowe and his clinical trials at Macquarie University. “This cause is deeply personal to us,” the fundraiser reads. “While we are adjusting to this unfamiliar journey together, John was quite clear that he wanted to do what he could to raise funds in support of Professor Dominic Rowe and his team.”
The crash has sent shockwaves through the tight-knit Cessnock community, with many rallying around the family in the wake of the tragedy.
NSW Taxi Council chief executive Nick Abrahim confirmed the vehicle involved was operated by a taxi company, and that the driver, who suffered minor injuries, had spoken to his manager at the scene.
“He did seem OK,” Abrahim told 9News. “We’re just grateful that everybody was able to get out.”
Police are continuing to investigate the cause of the crash, including reviewing footage and conducting a forensic examination of the site. The driver will also undergo mandatory blood and alcohol testing.
As Barrett remains in critical condition, what was meant to be a day of joy and celebration has instead become one of heartbreak, a wedding day that ended in tragedy.
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