Heartbroken dad tells of moment he watched his partner and three children killed by a Polish driver distracted by his mobile phone
Lorry ploughed into stationary queue of traffic while driver scrolled through music
A HEARTBROKEN father has spoken of the moment he watched four family members die in a horrific crash caused by a driver who was scrolling through music on his phone while in control of a 40-tonne lorry going 50mph.
The lorry ploughed into the back of a queue of traffic on the A344 in Berkshire and sent Mark Goldsmith's car into the back of his partner's, killing her, her two sons and his daughter.
In an exclusive interview with the he said: "I started sobbing. I threw up. They had died instantly. One big bang and they weren't there any more. The most heart wrenching thing is that I couldn't help them. It hurts me more than anything.
"They were so young and had so much life left. Tracy, too. The kids will never have a first girlfriend or boyfriend; everything has been robbed from them. You aren't supposed to bury your children. And all for a poxy mobile phone."
Mark's partner Tracy Houghton, 45, died with her two sons Josh and Ethan, aged 11 and 13, and his 11-year-old daughter Amiee in the eight-vehicle pile-up in August.
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The family had been driving home from a camping holiday in Devon with their two dogs Honey and Poppy.
The two dogs somehow escaped from Tracy's car and Honey was found a night later by well wishers.
Mark, of Bedfordshire, said: "She still sits by the front door waiting for the kids to come home. "
Mark's son Jake, 14, was travelling with him and also witnessed the horrific crash.
His mother Kate Goldsmith told the Sunday Times both he and his father have suffered "severe mental injuries".
Jake speaks little and has only attended a few hours of school while Mark is haunted by what he saw.
He said: "It was a scene of total carnage. I still see it every night when I go to sleep and when I wake up. I relive that moment every day."
Polish lorry driver Tomasz Kroker was jailed for 10 years last week.
Witnesses said he had climbed down from his lorry after the smash and screamed "I've killed them. I've killed them."
Mark said he pushed the driver away.
Kroker would later lie to police - telling them his brakes had failed.
Passing sentence, Judge Maura McGowan said his attention had been so poor that he "might as well have had his eyes closed".
The family has spoken to raise awareness about the dangers of drivers using their phones and joined calls for technology that can detect when one is being used to be introduced.
Outside court members of the family made a desperate plea to motorists to never use their mobile phones while driving.
In statement they said: "The sentence of ten years in prison will not ease our pain and suffering, nor do we believe it will send a strong enough message to those who lack the self-restraint to not use their mobile phones whilst driving.
"Anyone using a mobile whilst driving is guilty of dangerous driving. It only takes a second of distraction to kill someone, destroying your life, your family's lives, and those of your victim and their family.
"Today's outcome must serve as a reminder to us all of our responsibilities every time we drive and that the decisions we make can be fatal. Our children lost their lives because of the reckless actions of Tomasz Kroker.
"But we are not the only family to have suffered due to what is perceived by many as minor, inconsequential crime - a crime that takes place on our roads every day.
"We urge you to make a personal commitment to stop using mobile phones whilst driving and make our roads safer for everyone."
In the days after the sentencing The Sun examined footage from six dual carriageways and exposed the shocking epidemic of drivers STILL using their phones behind the wheel.
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