Brit family-of-four and two others killed in horror rental car crash on holiday in Portugal
They died in a head-on collision with another vehicle shortly after picking up their hire car at Faro Airport.
5
5
5
The victims include two 20-year-old twins, their 55-year-old father and their 51-year-old mum.
The 19-year-old girlfriend of one of the siblings also died in the tragic accident.
It also claimed the life of a Portuguese man travelling alone in the other car they collided with head-on.
The family had been travelling north from the Algarve towards Mourao in the district of Evora near the Spanish border.
The tragedy happened around 1.40am this morning on the IP2 main road in Castro Verde around halfway to their final destination.
Well-placed police sources said all four members of the same family killed were British passport holders.
The twins' parents hailed from Mourao and were returning to the municipality for holidays.
The man in the other car has been named locally as Ruben Goncalves, from a town in Portugal called Almodovar.
He was travelling south on the IP2.
The circumstances surrounding the fatal accident are being investigated by the GNR police force.
Town hall officials in Mourao have declared two days of mourning starting from tomorrow.
A spokesman said: 'The Municipal Council of Mourao has decreed two days of municipal mourning, effective from tomorrow, Sunday, following the death of five family members involved in a traffic accident last night on the IP2, near Castro Verde.
'The Municipality, in coordination with the family and law enforcement authorities, namely the local GNR Post in Castro Verde, obtained the number plate of the vehicle they were travelling in and confirmed the identity of the passengers at 3:35 p.m today.
'There were four occupants in the car, all from Mourao, and a young woman with ties to the family.
'Residents of England, they were traveling from Faro to Mourao for their usual and well-deserved vacation.
'It is with great sadness that the Municipality announces this information, offering its condolences to the families and friends of the victims.
'We inform you that all activities and events promoted by the Municipality are canceled for the entire weekend.'
Thesun.co.uk is your go-to destination for the best celebrity news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures and must-see video.
Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/thesun and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheSun.
5
5
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
10 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Helicopter pilot working for Outback Wrangler star Matt Wright makes bombshell claim in court
A helicopter pilot disconnected flight-time meters and falsified paperwork for reality TV star Matt Wright in the lead-up to a fatal crash on a crocodile egg-collecting mission, a court has been told. Jock Purcell gave evidence in the Supreme Court in Darwin on Monday in the jury trial of the Outback Wrangler star, who has pleaded not guilty to three charges of attempting to pervert the course of justice. The show's co-star, Chris 'Willow' Wilson, was suspended by a sling from a chopper when he fell to his death in remote swampland in the Northern Territory in February 2022. The helicopter then crashed, leaving pilot Sebastian Robinson a paraplegic. Prosecutors allege Wright was worried crash investigators would uncover that flight-time meters were regularly disconnected to extend flying hours beyond official thresholds and paperwork was falsified. Under questioning by crown prosecutor Jason Gullaci on Monday, Mr Purcell admitted there were 'more than 10 times' he didn't fill out a maintenance release form after flying one of Wright's helicopters. He also admitted disconnecting Hobbs meters, devices that recorded flight hours, and said he had seen Wright do the same thing. The disconnections occurred when required services were near-due for a helicopter, Mr Purcell said. He agreed he took directions from Wright on disconnecting meters and not recording hours. Mr Robinson also disconnected meters and had shown him how to do it, Mr Purcell said. He flew to the accident scene on the day of the crash and he said the aircraft's console had been unscrewed, but he couldn't recall who had done so. Under questioning from Mr Gullaci, the pilot said he looked behind the console to see if anything stood out to explain the crash and he saw the Hobbs meter was connected. 'You wanted to see whether it was connected or not for when investigators turned up to look at the crashed helicopter?' Mr Gullaci asked. 'I don't believe so,' Mr Purcell replied. The jury was played a covertly recorded conversation between Wright and Mr Purcell from August 2022 in which the reality TV star said: 'The Hobbs has been touched, they've moved it forward or some f***ing thing.' 'I don't know what Sebby (Mr Robinson) said to them ... because a lot of this stuff they could have got out of the (maintenance release),' Wright went on to say. When asked by Mr Gullaci if 'they' referred to crash investigators, Mr Purcell said he couldn't be sure as the call was a long time ago. The charges against Wright do not relate to the cause of the accident and the prosecution does not allege he is responsible for either the crash or Mr Wilson's death. The trial before acting Justice Allan Blow is expected to take up to five weeks.
Daily Mirror
40 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Brit beaten and mugged for Rolex in front of wife and screaming child in Majorca
A British man was beaten and had his watch stolen in front of his wife and daughter by a lurking gang in Majorca. Spanish police are now investigating the incident Police are investigating after a British tourist was beaten and mugged for his £40,000 Rolex watch in front of his wife and daughter in Majorca. The Brit, 44, was attacked in the resort of Port d'Andratx in the south-west of the island during an evening stroll that took place after a meal at a luxury hotel. It is thought the man had been watched for hours by an organised gang following repeated warnings about Rolex thefts in both Majorca, other Spanish holiday islands and the mainland. The violent robbery, which saw three people get out of a car and snatch the watch, is being investigated by the Spanish Civil Guard. It comes after a warning to Brit tourists planning all-inclusive holidays to Spain. "The man, together with his partner and their young daughter, was walking quietly in the area after having dinner in a luxury restaurant,' Spanish newspaper reported. 'Suddenly a car stopped nearby and three men with their faces covered came out of it and went directly to them. Between all of them they held the Briton and in a few seconds, and despite the resistance of the injured party, they stole the valuable watch he was wearing on one of his wrists.' The man's frightened daughter began to scream during the attack, which alerted hotel staff, and patrols from the Local Police of Andratx and the Civil Guard appeared at the scene within minutes. By then, the alleged criminals had already raced away from the scene after getting back in their vehicle with the watch. Investigators are now reviewing CCTV at different points in the Port d'Andratx area in a bid to identify the thugs. Police have also interviewed a number of witnesses. Sources close to the investigation say the gang had almost certainly watched the family for a number of hours before they struck. The extent of the British man's injuries is not yet known. It comes after Brits heading on holiday to Spain this summer were warned by police about a crime wave hitting all-inclusive hotels. Police have told tourists to be on their guard after a sudden increase in thefts and robberies from individuals and gangs who are targeting these types of locations. Authorities say that although all-inclusive hotels provide a wide variety of services but "safety is not usually among them." Through a video published on its official TikTok account, the Spanish National Police have issued an alert that highlights "a common and dangerous practice among tourists": neglecting their belongings while enjoying the pools and beaches of hotels. 'It is essential to remember that travelling to an all-inclusive hotel does not expressly guarantee protection for your personal effects in common areas such as the pool. Therefore, although it is a period to relax and disconnect, it is advisable to stay in control and take measures to avoid unpleasant situations that can spoil your holiday," say the police. Thefts tend to increase especially on summer holidays in destinations such as the Costa del Sol, the Costa Blanca, the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands, where the influx of tourists skyrockets and security measures can be overwhelmed on certain occasions.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Relative of British family killed in crash hours after renting car in Portugal reveals he had a dream 'premonition' of their deaths hours earlier
A grieving relative of the family killed in a Portuguese crash hours after they rented a hire car to start their holidays has said he dreamt about the tragedy before it happened. Domingos Serrano, 55, and his wife Maria Serrano 51, alongside their twin sons Domingos and Afonso, both aged 20, tragically died at the scene near Castro Verde. The family, believed to have been living in Thetford, Norfolk, were driving at around 1.40am on Saturday when their Nissan Juke, rented just hours earlier at Faro Airport, hit another car on a bend. Maria's heartbroken brother Carlos told local media he had 'seen' the accident hours before it occurred. He said: 'I dreamt about deaths. I saw a body in the sky and several bodies lying on the ground.' The tragic couple's older children, Fabio and Rita who also live in the UK, are due to fly to Portugal today to attend the funerals of their parents and younger siblings. Rita posted a tribute photo of her parents with the twins on her Facebook yesterday before leaving. She helped police discover the identities of her relatives after hearing about the crash and calling cops to say she was worried. Domingos Serrano, 55, and his wife Maria Serrano 51, alongside their twin sons Domingos and Afonso, both aged 20 (all pictured), tragically died after their hire car collided with another vehicle along the IP2 main road near Castro Verde in Portugal at around 1.40am on Saturday It emerged today Maria had kept their visit to Portugal a secret from friends and family in Mourao, near to Evora and the border with Spain. The road where the accident occurred, at a spot where the speed limit is 80kmh, wasn't reopened until just after 7am on Saturday morning, more than five hours after it occurred. The driver of the second vehicle involved, named locally as 26-year-old Portuguese mine worker Ruben Conclaves, also sadly died. The father-of-one had been driving south of the IP2. Meanwhile, the 19-year-old Polish partner of one of the twins, identified locally by the first name Veronica, is also understood to have passed away following the collision. Pictures from the crash scene showed the mangled wreckage of one of the two vehicles involved in the accident beside the road, with the vehicle initially said to have burst into flames. The cause of the crash which claimed six lives has yet to be made public, and the circumstances surrounding the fatal accident are being investigated by the GNR police force. A police source close to the ongoing investigation into the early-hours accident said on Saturday evening: 'The rental car was such a wreck officers could only recover half a number-plate and with that began working on trying to establish the identity. 'A daughter of the couple killed alongside their twin sons, worried because she had heard about the crash in Portugal and was concerned because she couldn't contact her loved ones, rang the police to speak about her fears it was her family involved. 'With the information she gave them officers made checks with the hire car firm at Faro Airport and tragically discovered a match. 'That was how they were able to confirm the identities of the five occupants in the car with the four members of the same family inside.' The hire car they were travelling in caught fire after the crash and local reports said they had all burned to death, although it will be up to forensic experts to decide whether some or all of the occupants were already dead when flames took hold of the vehicle. Now, heartbreaking tributes have poured in for the family, who were living in the UK. Thetford Football Club described twins Domingos and Afonso as 'an integral part' of the U18s team, saying that they wished to 'pass on our sincere condolences to the Serrano family and the local Portuguese community'. The Norfolk club added: 'The loss of this lovely family will leave a massive void in the local community.' Meanwhile, Thetford Bulldogs Football Club remembered the twins, both former players for the club, as part of the 'Bulldogs family'. They added: 'Yesterday the club received tragic news that former players Dom and Alfonso Serrano lost their lives in a car accident while heading to a summer holiday. 'Dom and Alfonso were part of our Bulldogs family under Jo and Tom before transitioning to senior football. 'Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with their families and loved ones during this devastating time.' The post concluded: 'Partiram, mas nunca serao esquecidos,' which translates to: 'They are gone, but they will never be forgotten.' The tragedy, was said by Mourau authorities to have taken place during the family's 'usual and deserved vacation' as they travelled north from the Algarve. Well-placed police sources said that the twins' parents hailed from Mourao and were returning to the municipality for holidays. Mr Domingos is also said to have celebrated his 55th birthday on Thursday just two days before flying to Portugal. In a statement, Mourao's municipal council confirmed the deaths, stating: 'It is with great regret that the municipality announces this information, offering its condolences to the families and friends of the victims,' it said. 'In the car there were four occupants, of Mouranese nature, and a young woman with affinity to the family. Residents in England, [they] follow from Faro to Mourão, for the usual and deserved vacation.' Following the incident, town hall chiefs in Mourao declared two days of mourning from Sunday, with several activities and events initially planned across the weekend immediately cancelled. Devastated commenters have taken to social media to pay tribute to the family following the fatal incident. One heartbroken social media user, understood to be a close friend of the family, wrote last night: 'Rest in peace friend Domingos Serrano and family.' Meanwhile, locals in Mourao also paid their respects to the family, with one user saying: 'My most sincere condolences to all those killed. I hope their souls rest in peace. 'It's so sad to hear of people leaving their homeland and friends in search of a better life and then have their lives end like this. How unfair life is.' Another commenter added: 'My sincere condolences to the loved ones of those killed. 'Mourao must rally round to comfort the families of the victims.' A spokesperson for Mourao's Municipal Council previously said: 'The Municipality, in coordination with the family and law enforcement authorities, namely the local GNR Post in Castro Verde, obtained the number plate of the vehicle they were travelling in and confirmed the identity of the passengers at 3:35 p.m today. 'There were four occupants in the car, all from Mourao, and a young woman with ties to the family. 'Residents of England, they were traveling from Faro to Mourao for their usual and well-deserved vacation. 'It is with great sadness that the Municipality announces this information, offering its condolences to the families and friends of the victims.'
