Hokkaido deadly accident: ‘The one factor I might hear was my spouse screaming’

SINGAPORE – He was driving a rental automotive in Hokkaido, Japan, together with his spouse and two daughters within the again seat when a lorry collided with their vehicle.

The very last thing Mr Karthik Balasubramanian heard earlier than he handed out was his spouse, Ms Lin Xiuyue, screaming.

Ms Lin, 41, and their four-month-old daughter, Aahana, didn’t survive the accident on Jan 10.

Chatting with The Straits Occasions on Thursday on the wake of his spouse and daughter in Jurong West, Mr Karthik, 44, stated the sound of his spouse crying out simply earlier than the crash nonetheless haunts him.

Recalling the moments earlier than the accident, he stated street situations didn’t permit him to get view of an upcoming intersection that was not proven on the GPS map he was utilizing to navigate.

“The street was up and down and up and down,” he stated.

“You may’t see something as a result of there’s snow on each side… You simply observe the street and maintain driving.

“So (at) the final minute, like possibly 150m or one thing, I noticed the cease signal. Then I began making use of the brakes, however it was too late to cease.

“The one factor I might hear was my spouse screaming within the automotive, like one loud scream. And I can nonetheless hear it. After that, I blacked out most likely for a couple of minutes.”

His smartwatch alerted him that he had been in an accident. He bought out of the automotive to assist his household.

As native drivers got here to their support, Mr Karthik’s spouse, who was bleeding badly, lay on his lap.

He tried blowing air into her mouth whereas a passer-by compressed her chest to attempt to resuscitate her.

An ambulance that arrived shortly after took Ms Lin and Aahana to the hospital.

There, docs tried in useless to restart Ms Lin’s coronary heart. Aahana didn’t endure any bodily accidents however couldn’t get well from the shock of the accident, Mr Karthik stated.