(Image: redcar and cleveland borough council)
The A66 remains closed this morning (August 24) as repair work continues following the devastating crash which claimed the lives of seven people, including two Cleveland Police officers.
The road has been shut around South Bank, Teesside, since the fatal collision in the early hours of Saturday, and the diversion in place throughout the weekend will remain until the carriageway reopens.
Police confirmed on Monday that the closure is needed to allow repairs to be carried out.
A large number of flowers and balloons have also been left on the closed section of the A66 as communities pay tribute to those who died.
The floral tributes have moved to this location near the A66
(Image: redcar and cleveland borough council)
For safety reasons, the tributes are being moved to the grass verge in front of the South Tees Business Park sign, at the junction of the A66 and Normanby Road. Police have asked anyone wishing to leave further tributes to use that location.
Pc Matthew Blades, 37, and Pc Tom Clough, 38, died when a Volkswagen Passat travelling the wrong way along the dual carriageway collided with their marked armed response vehicle.
Cole Robert Worthy, 17, Theo Rae, 17, Makai Saddington, 18, Michael Robert Cahill, 23, and Jacob Matusiak, 23, who were travelling in the Passat, were also pronounced dead at the scene.
The Passat had earlier been pursued by police after intelligence was received relating to “numerous incidents” linked to the vehicle, according to the Independent Office for Police Conduct.
The watchdog said the Passat, which is believed to have been using cloned number plates, activated an ANPR camera before an armed response vehicle began pursuing it.
The pursuit lasted for just under seven minutes before the Passat entered the A66 at South Bank against the flow of traffic.
Police terminated the pursuit and continued travelling on the correct side of the carriageway. Around 10 seconds later, the Passat collided with the vehicle occupied by Pc Blades and Pc Clough, who had not been involved in the original pursuit but had been called to the area to assist with the search.
Tributes have since poured in for all seven people who died.
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Pc Blades’ wife described him as her “beloved husband, my best friend, and the most devoted father to our two young boys”, while Pc Clough’s family called him “our hero” and said he was “always on public duty”.
More than £250,000 has also been raised through fundraisers supporting the officers’ families.
Balloon releases have been arranged in memory of the five young men, while a silent prayer vigil is due to be held at St John the Evangelist Church in South Bank on Monday.
The A66 diversion will remain in place until the road is expected to reopen on Tuesday.