3 Singaporeans aged between 21 and 24 were involved in a tragic accident in New Zealand after their rental camper van crashed and burst into flames, killing the three of them.
The accident took place on 17 April at about 1 am at intersection of a road along a highway, with their van hitting a barrier at an intersection before it caught on fire.
The three Singaporeans killed in the accident are Sherwin Chong Shi Yun and Xin Yue Yang, both 21-year-old, as well as 24-year-old Jia Jun Vincent Lim, according to The New Zealand Herald.
The local emergency services received a call for help on 17 April at about 1 am, after the accident which occurred along the Te Moana Road near the town of Geraldine.
The camper van was a rental vehicle that was owned by the Tourism and Travel Ltd that is based in Canterbury, and was hired by the group.
The company’s owner also told reporters that his staff was distressed by the accident.
The camper van had hit a barrier at the intersection of the road along the State Highway 79, before bursting into flames and killing the trio of Singaporeans.
The local police said that the deaths of the three deceased Singaporeans have since been referred to the coroner for examinations.
One of the occupants inside the car had called for help after the crash and eleven volunteer firefighters rushed to the crash site.
The volunteer fire brigade chief of the Geraldine Volunteer Fire Brigage, Graeme Mould, told the New Zealand Herald that it was one of the most severe operations that he had responded to, calling it a traumatic event, and that none of his firefighters had responded to anything that major in recent times.
The eleven volunteer firefighters later met that evening for a debrief and were offered individual counselling after the operation, via the Fire and Emergency NZ.