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Belfast Live
Belfast Live
National
Damien Edgar

Downpatrick community rallies round family of young mum who died following tragic accident

The Downpatrick community have rallied around the family of a young mum who tragically lost her life following an accident on Valentine's Day.

Michaela Curran, 35, sadly died following the incident in the Bishop's Brae area shortly after 2.30pm.

Despite the best efforts of emergency services, the mum-of-three passed away at the scene.

Read more: Young mum Michaela Curran who died in road crash had a 'heart of gold'

Patricia Rhodes, the aunty of Michaela's husband Kyle, has set up a GoFundMe page to help try and ease the burden on the family at such a difficult time.

"It's really just to help with the cost of her funeral and the headstone and everything extra will go to the boys to just help them in their everyday life," said Patricia.

"There's a mother figure that's now gone and it's Kyle on his own with the two boys.

"It's not something that you're thinking of at 35 years of age, that you need to be planning a funeral.

"It's really just to take that whole burden off them."

She added that the community in Downpatrick had shown their generosity and compassion in their response, with over £6,000 raised already.

"I knew the community would pull together, there was never a shadow of doubt that that money wouldn't be raised," she said.

"Because I know local people always pull together at times like this.

"I've went in to every donation that's come through on the GoFundMe page and thanked them for it.

"It's supporting Kyle and the boys, it's going to be very dark times ahead for them and there's no getting away from that."

Patricia said that she was still struggling to believe what had happened, but said Michaela had loved her family so dearly.

"I had literally just turned and come back in to give her a bouquet of flowers and I was heading back when the accident happened," she said.

"Everything happened in the blink of an eye.

"She lived for her boys and Kyle, they were her world.

"She was just such a vibrant, bubbly character and she just always had a smile on her face, she was a good girl.

"My last memory of her is laughing and joking and we were winding Kyle up, it's just so hard to comprehend."

The GoFundMe page set up to help Michaela's family can be accessed here.

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