Cade Lucas
The sense of grief, loss and disbelief was palpable at Saltwater Reserve in Point Cook on Thursday night at a vigil for the victims of the Daylesford hotel crash.
Distraught family and friends were joined by local dignitaries and members of the public in mourning the five victims, all from Wyndham’s Indian community, who died when an SUV crashed into the beer garden of the Royal Daylesford Hotel on Sunday November 5.
Point Cook’s Pratibha Sharma, her husband Jatin Chugh and daughter Anvi were killed in the crash, as were Tarneit father and son Vivek and Vihaan Bhatia.
A portrait of the Sharma family sat next to the stage where close family and friends came forward to pay tribute to the deceased family just a short distance from their Point Cook home.
Pratibha Sharma’s close friend Dr Sonia Cheema said the tragedy would leave a lasting impact on the community and warned the recovery process would be long.
“A loss is a loss. It cannot be quantified with the amount of relationship or amount of gathering that you have done,” Dr Sheema said.
“That loss has to be remembered. And it’s not just one event where we come together and we just share our sentiments. I think there is a lot that needs to be done, ” she said, adding that Ruchi and Abeer Bhatia were still be treated in hospital
Pratibha Sharma’s grief stricken family then addressed the gathering, with her father giving an emotional speech in his native Hindi as chaplains and grief counsellors consolled members of the crowd.
Wyndham mayor Susan McIntyre presided over the vigil and later released a statement offering further support.
“Our tight knit community is devasted and the vigil was a way for our community to grieve and show respect for the victims,” Cr McIntyre said.
“We know many of our residents are still in shock from the horrific tragedy that has affected many in our community. If people are grieving and need assistance, Wyndham City’s Community Connector service can help. If residents need support, but are unsure of where to start, email us at communityconnector@wyndham.vic.gov.au.”
At the end of proceedings mourners lay plastic candles beneath the Sharma family portrait, which began to glow in the dark as night fell.
Darkness also brought about anger and frustration among some family and friends who complained that the driver of the SUV had not yet been named or even interviewed and demanded justice for the victims.
There was also the sensitive topic of control of Anvi’s body, with her biological father currently keeping it separate from that of her mother and partner’s, preventing the family from being cremated together.
“Why are you are doing this, they should be all together,” pleaded an emotional Vikas Sharma, Pratibha’s older brother, to assembled media.
Ms Sharma and her ex-husband separated soon after their daughter’s birth.
Dr Sonia Cheema added that delaying the cremation was adding further pain to the victims’ families.
“The family is going through profound grief and they need to have the peace and closure by doing the right rituals,” she said.
“It’s an immigrant community who believes in certain kinds of rituals that need to be done. The prayers need to done, everything needs to be done together to actually let their souls rest in peace.”
