Speak Their Names: Honouring Lives Lost to Road Trauma
Speak Their Names: Honouring Lives Lost to Road Trauma
At 4:20 p.m. on November 1, 2021, Tracy Blake’s life changed forever. As she left her office, ready to call her daughter Mackenzie and catch up on her day, she noticed a string of missed calls. Returning one of them, a gentle but devastating voice delivered the words that would echo in her mind for years to come: “There has been a crash. I’m sorry, Mackenzie has been killed.”
Mackenzie, just 21, had finished her shift at McDonald’s in the Blue Mountains and was walking along the footpath when a truck, driven by an unlicensed driver on meth and GHB, mounted the curb and ended her young life. For her mother Tracy, “That Day” is one she relives constantly.
“I remember thinking, this can’t be real,” Tracy shares. “I hoped, I prayed the police had it wrong. But then they handed me her license, and I knew my world would never be the same.”
Tracy’s story is heartbreakingly common. New research by Road Trauma Support Group and FiftyFive5 (Accenture Song) ‘The Human Impact of Fatal Road Crimes in NSW’ shows 1 in 5 adults—1.8 million people in NSW —have lost someone they knew in a road crash. Of these, 280,000 have experienced the death of a close friend or relative due to a criminal road incident.
The effects of such loss ripple outwards, impacting not only immediate family members but also friends, colleagues, and entire communities.
For loved ones, the emotional and psychological toll is immense. The research shows that:
59% of those left behind experience depression, anxiety, or PTSD
47% of parents who lose a child to road trauma contemplate suicide
Grieving families are 4.8 times more likely to experience severe illness like heart conditions and strokes following their loss.
“It’s not just losing Mackenzie—it’s losing her voice, her laughter, her sarcasm, and the joy she brought to our family,” Tracy reflects. “I miss the way she’d say, ‘Hello,’ whenever I called her, and the light she brought into my life. I miss her love most of all.”
For Tracy, keeping Mackenzie’s memory alive is an act of love and resilience. “I talk about Mackenzie at every chance I get,” she says. “It’s so important that she’s remembered—not just for how she died, but for how she lived. Mackenzie was vibrant, gifted, and kind. She mattered.”
This sentiment resonates deeply with the millions of people who have lost a loved one in a crash. Saying their names ensures they are not just statistics but cherished individuals with stories, dreams, and relationships.
The experience of road trauma is not confined to the day of the crash. Families face ongoing pain as they navigate their grief and its profound consequences:
43% of families experience a breakdown in relationships, struggling under the weight of their loss
89% report mental health challenges, including insomnia, anger, and flashbacks
Even years later, many describe feelings of isolation, as life moves on around them while their grief remains.
“Mackenzie was more than my daughter,” Tracy says. “She was my confidant, my support, my laughter on the hard days. Her nephews will grow up knowing about their Angel Aunt because her story deserves to be told.”
Following the global World Day of Remembrance this month, we are reminded that behind every road toll number lies a story. Behind each statistic is a mother like Tracy, a family left reeling, and a community forever changed.
Tracy hopes people will take a moment to remember not just Mackenzie but all who have been lost to road crashes. “Speak their names, tell their stories,” she urges. “Because they lived, they loved, and they mattered. And they always will.”
Mackenzie’s name will not be forgotten, nor will the countless others whose lives were tragically cut short. Not only on the World Day of Remembrance, but every day, we honour them by remembering, speaking, and ensuring their legacies endure.
29 November, 2024