16-year-old Taylor Swift fan killed on way to Australia concert
By Angus Watson, Jennifer Hauser and Heather Chen, CNN
(CNN) — A sixteen-year-old Taylor Swift fan was killed in a head-on collision with a semi-trailer while on her way to see the pop star in concert in Melbourne on Thursday.
Mieka Pokarier was being driven by her mother to the concert when the SUV they were traveling in was involved in a collision with the semi-trailer shortly before 6 p.m. local time, CNN affiliate 7 News Australia reported.
Mieka, who was in the front passenger seat, died at the scene, local police said. Her 10-year-old sister, who was in the backseat, is in critical condition at a local hospital, 7 News Australia reported.
Her mother is being treated for minor injuries.
Melbourne police said the collision took place about 30 kilometers (18 miles) northeast of the city of Dubbo.
“The driver of the SUV was treated by NSW (New South Wales) ambulance paramedics before being taken to Dubbo Hospital with minor injuries,” New South Wales police said in a statement.
“The rear passenger, a 10-year-old girl, was airlifted to Westmead Hospital in a critical condition,” the police statement added.
Swift is in Melbourne for the Australia leg of her global “Eras Tour.”
The tragedy follows the death in November of a Taylor Swift fan before a concert in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. That death came amid a record heatwave that had prompted Swift to postpone an earlier show.
Benevides Machado, 23, reportedly collapsed at the stadium and later died.
“This is the last thing I ever thought would happen when we decided to bring this tour to Brazil,” Swift said in a statement on Instagram at the time. “I can’t even tell you how devastated I am by this.
“I’m not going to be able to speak about this from stage because I feel overwhelmed by grief when I even try to talk about it.”
In Australia, a GoFundMe page has been set up to support Mieka’s relatives.
“My family are what I live for. I’m devastated,” said her father, according to 7 News Australia.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
