Visit to wedding caterer among day's errands

Four-year-old Lynill D'Anastasi tugged at a family photo held by his aunt in an attempt to get a glimpse of his parents and younger sister who died together with both his parents in the tragic traffic accident in Żejtun on Wednesday.

He seemed oblivious to what was going on as he walked through a gathering of red-eyed relatives and neighbours who streamed to his grandmother's house to express their condolences.

His grandmother clasped her wallet in one hand and pulled out a small pile of passport-sized photos of her son Jonathan Seychell, Lynill's father.

"He was such a good person... He was vain and loved taking care of his image. Each time he had to have a photo taken he'd give me one to keep in order to ensure I had the most recent picture of him," she said adding she preferred not to see her name printed in the papers.

Mr Seychell, his girlfriend of eight years, Roxana D'Anastasi and their three-year-old daughter Kelsey died in a collision that shocked their hometown. At the time, Lynill was at his grandmother's house.

The accident happened at about 5 p.m. when the couple, both 20, and their daughter were in a black Toyota Starlet. They were driving along Anton Buttigieg Street, headed towards Marsascala, when Mr Seychell, who was at the wheel, overtook two cars and found himself facing a bowser coming from the opposite direction.

The car got caught under the front of the bowser and was smashed against a wall. Three hours later, the lifeless bodies of the three family members were taken out of the wreck.

Distraught by the sudden deaths, the parents of Mr Seychell and Ms D'Anastasi urged the authorities to do something to improve the safety on Anton Buttigieg Street that was the cause of several deaths.

The message was also echoed by the Żejtun local council, which called on the transport authority to publish its plans for the road and take action as soon as possible.

Mayor Joe Attard said the council had been raising its concerns about the road with the authority for the past nine years. Last year, plans were outlined to better control the traffic there but nothing was done.

The parents of the couple also called on motorists to drive carefully and not to turn cars into death traps.

"Cars are nice and Jonathan loved them.... But people out there need to learn to drive carefully. Don't let your car take your life away... not to mention the suffering these accidents cause to people's families," Mr Seychell's mother said in a tried tone. After a brief pause she added: "Kelsey was such a sweet girl. She looked like a little Brazilian girl with her tight curls".

Mr Seychell's sisters, who also preferred not to be mentioned by name, reflected on the terrible end their brother and his family had met. The couple had been together for almost eight years as they met when they were just 12 years old in the village square. They planned to get married within two years and had set the wedding date for May 14, 2011. On the day of the accident they had several errands to run, which included a visit to the wedding caterer, one of his sisters said.

The funeral will be held tomorrow at 8.30 a.m. at St Catherine's parish church in Żejtun.