iblings share grief for beloved sister killed by drunk driver

A brother and sister have shared a heartfelt tribute to their sibling who was killed by a drunk driver in Somerset last year. Sarah Baker was on her way to visit a friend in the county in August 2022 when she was hit by a Ford Transit van driven by 21-year-old Anton Hull. Hull was driving home from a pub, where he had been cut off because of how drunk he was.

He had filmed himself on his mobile phone saying he was "smashed" before causing the crash near Wincanton which killed 29-year-old Sarah. He was sentenced to six years in prison at a hearing last month.[1] In a statement, Sarah's family said her loss left a "gaping hole" in their hearts. "She was the most caring, loyal and generous daughter, sister, niece, cousin, friend and most recently aunty anyone could hope to have in their lives. The immeasurable pain we feel is so unnecessary when Sarah's death was entirely preventable.

The utterly selfish act of one individual has ended her life and ruined those lives around her," they said. Now, in a video shared by Avon and Somerset Police, Sarah's siblings Christina Biltcliff and Jack Baker have shared their grief, loss and love for their sister ahead of a typically booze-filled time of year. "Growing up, I think that me, Sarah and Jack - we lived together with our mum and dad.

We grew up on the Kent coast and we were a really close family. Everyone just knew us as Christina, Sarah and Jack," Christina said. The three siblings wound up living together in London after Jack finished university.

"A lot of the people I've told that before to go 'I couldn't live with my brother and sister, I'd want to kill them'. And that was never us," Jack explained. "We were always really quite happy to be in each other's company and be around each other." Recalling the day they were told of Sarah's death, Christina said she remembered saying 'no' "a million times", while Jack said it was "every bit as bad as you can imagine and worse".

Christina added: "I think I just didn't know what to do. I think I wanted my mum at that point, and I couldn't have my mum because she's died. You just want someone to make it better and no one was gonna make it better."

"When you don't have a mum either... Sarah kind of filled that space for me and it's been really hard," she said. Jack added: "When Sarah died, a little bit of all of us died, all of us who knew Sarah, who loved Sarah.

The version of our lives with Sarah died that day." Avon and Somerset Police are urging people to report drink-drivers this Christmas to avoid more tragic collisions over the holiday period. The force said drink and drug driving was a factor in a third of road crashes in 2021, which involved the deaths of 21 people.

Sarah and Jack were asked what they would say to someone unsure if they should report an intoxicated driver. "Sarah was so loved and she had so much love to give," Christina said. "I would say, if you could stop that happening for yourself or to another family then really, really think about doing it." Jack said: "I think people have a tendency to believe that it won't ever be them.

People believe 'it won't happen to me', you know, 'I've don't it before', or maybe they haven't. But it only takes one time to have your life ruined or someone else's life ruined." Inspector Rob Barker, Roads Policing lead at Avon and Somerset Police said: "My message to the public this Christmas is simple.

If you know someone that regularly drinks or takes drugs and gets behind the wheel, then your action- or inaction - could make a real difference to the wellbeing of other road users.

"Your report could prevent serious consequences by helping us take a dangerous and irresponsible driver off the road before they can cause harm.

During December, we'll be actively targeting motorists who pose a risk to others by choosing to drink and drug drive, as well as carrying out proactive stop checks at key roadside locations both day and night."

References

1. ^ He was sentenced to six years in prison at a hearing last month. (www.somersetlive.co.uk)