A teenager has died, and her younger sister left in a coma, after a car they were travelling in to Melbourne, for Taylor Swift's Eras Tour, collided with a truck.
Sixteen-year-old Mieka Pokarier was travelling from the Gold Coast with her mother, Kim Litchfield, and younger sister, Freya, when their vehicle collided with a semi-trailer about 30 kilometres northeast of Dubbo on Thursday.
Freya, 10, was critically injured in the crash and was flown into Westmead Hospital in Sydney for treatment. The girls' mother and the truck driver both suffered minor injuries and were treated at a Dubbo hospital. Kim has since rushed to Sydney to be with Freya, who remains in hospital.
The sisters' godmother, Karleigh Fox, shared that the 10-year-old is fighting for her life after suffering brain injuries, a damaged pelvis and a broken leg.
"We are keeping our girl in an induced coma for a few more days in order to give her body a chance to stay still and hopefully recover as much as possible," Karleigh said.
"We are playing her favourite Taylor Swift album, 1989 (Taylor’s Version), on repeat in her room and telling her about the merch we are seeing people buying online."
The family's journey was meant to be the girls' trip of a lifetime, "with them going to concerts in both Melbourne and Sydney", Karleigh added.
"Hold your loved ones a little longer, look them in the eyes and tell them how beautiful they are to you."
The girls' father, Peter Pokarier, has also shared his grief on Facebook, writing, "That's my baby that died."
Mieka and Freya's family and friends have reportedly reached out to Taylor Swift in hopes she will make contact with Freya.
Mieka's friend Cheyenne Craig, 17, said she would do anything to trade places with her friend who was "taken way too early".
Cheyenne said Mieka was learning to drive and "had so many plans for the future".
"Mieka, oh what a beautiful beacon of light you were, I never thought I’d have to imagine going to your house and you not being fast asleep in your bed or having to tell you to hurry up or we're leaving you behind," she wrote on social media.
"How is it fair that someone as sweet and beautiful as you was taken away from us so soon?"
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up for Mieka and Freya's family, and has raised almost $33,000 since the crash. "The family have all had to cease work to fly down [to Sydney]," Karleigh wrote on the page. "Funds will be used to function in this challenging time."
Feature Image: Supplied.