The wife of a man who died in a serious crash on the M1 said her 'pain will never go away' as she paid a heartfelt tribute to her late husband. The last words Andrew Steer said to his wife was a reflection of their unbreakable love story of 25 years.
Wendy Steer, 59, said her husband would never leave the house without telling her "I love you". It was the case on the last time delivery driver Andrew left their home in Bradford, to head out to his job.
"He said I love you", Ms Steer recollected. "And then I said I love you more. And then he told me that he loves me most and off he went. He would always say that before he would leave the house. I am glad that we managed to say I love you that night as well."
Hours later, Mr Steer was involved in a multi-vehicle collison on the M1 motorway at Trowell, near junction 25 southbound. His vehicle collided with the rear of an articulated lorry, before a third vehicle driven by Harris Gondwe also crashed. Both Mr Steer, 52, and Mr Gondwe, 38, died in the crash on January 20 this year.
READ MORE: 'Unusual' incident led to deaths of 2 men in multi-vehicle crash on M1
An inquest into their deaths concluded on Monday, December 19, that both men involved in the crash died of multiple injuries. Mr Steer died having sustained multiple injuries after he drove his van into the rear of a slow moving articulated truck which was travelling behind a rolling road block.
Work was being carried out by National Highways between junctions 25 and 26, and a system known as MIDAS - which is used to monitor traffic volumes and automatically set signs and signals as the motorway becomes more congested - was in place on the motorway. The court was told how the stationary traffic might have failed to trigger the system.
It is not possible to determine the reason for the collision, the coroner's report concluded. Mr Steer's wife said she finds it difficult to come to terms with Andrew's death.
"I called him in the morning and he did not call me back. I started to panic", she said. "And then when police came to tell us, it was around 6pm at night. I shouted at them 'don't you dare tell me he is dead'."
"I still have that panic. That panic that I felt when I did not know where he was", Ms Steer added.
They were together for 25 years, and had a son together. When they met, Ms Steer already had her two daughters. She said they "would never be quiet together" - but they delayed getting married because they could not afford to.
"We have had 11 years of marriage. It was a long engagement", she added. But he proposed to her while they were out in a pub with Andrew's boss and his wife.
"His boss started crying", Ms Steer added. "I bought my wedding dress for £100, and had our wedding in a pub. It was cheap, we brought the food. It was the most beautiful thing that ever happend to me."
She giggled and added: "He was my toy boy because he was younger than me. He had a dry sense of humour, he was very funny."
But Ms Steer's "world collapsed" when her husband died. "At this moment in time, I do not think it will ever get better. I am crying every day. One minute I talk to someone, and then I start crying."
It will also be her first Christmas spent without the 'love of my life'. "It is just a nightmare thinking that he will not be there. The only thing that makes me feel better is our fantastic family.
"Our son is 24 and we live together now. He looks like Andrew, and that makes me very happy. My sister had to live with me for months after it happened because I was so devastated."
Paying tribute to her late husband, she added: "He always used to organise a karaoke party for New Year's. This year, my son is doing it. It will be sad because Andrew will not be there.
"My world has just collapsed, and it is hard to come to terms with that. He was fun, and caring. He was my everything."
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