A devastated grandad whose teenage granddaughter died after being knocked down by a dangerous driver has said his family "will never be the same again".
Shortly before 10pm on September 19, 2020, Courtney Ellis, from Haydock in St Helens, was fatally injured in a crash on Blackbrook Road.
The crash happened after Courtney, who was 14 at the time, had been in a park with a friend and her sister. She was taken to hospital and later died from her injuries.
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At the time, Merseyside Police arrested two teenagers in connection with her death, who were later released from custody and investigations continue.
Last week marked what would have been Courtney's 15th birthday and grandad David Ellis has spoken of how he went numb after getting the devastating phone call.
David, 67, told the ECHO: "I was watching Britain's Got Talent, my wife was upstairs watching her programmes and next minute I get a phone call saying 'you better get down here, Courtney's been ran over. The police are here and the ambulance are here.'
"We were devastated. I just went numb. I phoned my son and he was heartbroken.
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"We couldn't put words to it, it's just horrible, even to this day. My wife, my son - it's just an ongoing thing. We've never been the same since.
"My son will never be the same again, we'll never be the same again. It's just heartbreaking all the time, any time you think about it.
"She was 14 years of age, you can't get your head around it. When she died a part of us all died as well."
David said Courtney wanted to be a midwife and was a "proper loving girl".
Hundreds turned up last week to mark what would have been Courtney's 15th birthday where a balloon release took place.
David said: 'She was a well-liked girl. She was brilliant.
"She was always laughing and messing about all the time. She was dead bubbly. She always liked pets, she loved animals, she was outgoing.
"The balloon release was on the Wednesday when she would have been 15. The amount of people who came, girls with balloons, there must have been well over a hundred of them."
David and his wife Rose, stepdaughter Joanne, son and Courtney's dad Colin and his girlfriend Paige wanted to thank the community for their support which continues to this day.
In April, a new memorial bench and tree in Courtney's name was unveiled and Colin and David thanked everyone who was involved in making it happen.
Colin said: "This is the first birthday for my daughter Courtney since she passed away last September. She would've been 15 on June 16. I knew it was going to be an incredibly hard day to get through.
"So many of Courtney's friends turn up for the balloon release. They were so respectful and really did do Courtney proud.
"It was very emotional but perfect to celebrate the first birthday since she left us. Her sister did the countdown to release the balloons and as they sailed off her friends played a beautiful song."
"I can't thank the people of Haydock and Blackbrook enough for their ongoing support and for messages we've received."
