Witnesses say a car drove across the road and into the path of a bus causing the crash which killed a mum and two children.
Daria Bartienieva, 35, her son, Ihor Bartieniev, aged six, and Daria’s 15-year-old stepdaughter, Anastasiia Bartienieva died at the scene.
Another daughter aged 15 was not in the car that day. The family were Ukrainian refugees who had fled the Russian war and found a new home in Ripon.
Crash location
The three casualties were in a silver Vauxhall Meriva driven by Daria which collided with a double decker bus on the A61 at South Stainley near Ripon on Sunday 3 September.
An inquest held in Northallerton heard that the family moved to the UK in 2022. Daria had a Ukrainian driving licence, and started driving in Britain about a year before the crash, after her husband died.
A friend had accompanied her to begin with to help her familiarise herself with the roads in the area.
Her surviving daughter said her mum had become familiar with the A61 after driving two or three times a week along it in the months before the collision.
On the day of the crash, Daria, who had been diagnosed with colon cancer, was on the way to an appointment at Harrogate Hospital. She was still driving with a probationary ‘P’ plate on the car.
The inquest heard that the road surface was good and conditions sunny and dry at the time of the crash, around 2.20pm.
It happened as the Vauxhall approached a left hand bend.
Passengers on the bus, a number 36 Harrogate Bus Company Ripon to Leeds service, and in cars close by, said the Vauxhall Meriva didn’t appear to steer or brake and crossed into the other lane.
It hit the front offside corner of the bus, span round and collided with a Toyota Aygo.
Emergency services, including the Yorkshire Air Ambulance, were at the incident within minutes.
Daria, who was driving, Anastasiia, the front seat passenger, and Ihor in a child seat in the back, were all pronounced dead at the scene.
Five people in the bus were injured, including the driver Russell King.
In a statement read out by coroner Jonathan Leach, the passenger of the Toyota Aygo, Remi Cauquil, said his partner Lorraine Gayle was driving behind the Vauxhall.
After hitting the bus, the Vauxhall span into the Toyota. Both Remi and Lorraine managed to get of their car and Remi helped a former firefighter at the scene administer first aid to the occupants of the Vauxhall before the paramedics arrived.
In his statement, bus driver Russell King said he “felt he had no time to react” when the Toyota drove towards the bus on the wrong side of the road.
Emma Faith was travelling on the top deck of the bus with her mum. She said: “There was an almighty bang. I knew the car had hit us.” She ended up on the bus floor.
A post mortem toxicology report found no trace of alcohol or drugs in Daria’s system.
Traffic Sergeant Ken Riley, a forensic collision investigator for North Yorkshire Police, went to the scene shortly after the crash and prepared a report on the incident.
He said there were no defects in the vehicles or on the road that would help to account for the collision.
The bus was in its lane and driving well within the speed limit at 42mph.
TS Riley said the sun was shining down the road towards where Daria was driving.
CCTV footage from the bus showed the Vauxhall was travelling in direct sunlight before entering shadow a split second before the collision.
At that point, there was an indication that Daria tried to correct her steering but it was too late.
He said the collision was caused by her driving into the opposite carriageway by failing to negotiate a left-hand bend.
TS Riley told the inquest: “The exact cause is unknown, but glare from the sun is a consideration, as is a distraction within the vehicle.”
A post mortem on Daria, Anastasiia and Ihor found that they died of multiple injuries caused by blunt force trauma.
In his conclusion, coroner Jonathan Leach said: “The reason why Daria entered the opposite lane is unclear and unknown, and will remain so.”
He said the three died as a result of injuries sustained in a road traffic collision, and offered condolences to the family.
Friends of the family in Ripon went on to raise about £50,000 for the surviving daughter.