Smash kills City man and daughter

A mother of three lies critically ill in a coma today after a horrific motorway accident killed her husband and one of her twin daughters and left her two other children with serious injuries.

City solicitor Michael Thomas, 40, was in the passenger seat next to his wife Claire when their Vauxhall Omega swerved into the path of a 38-ton lorry on an M27 contraflow near Southampton.

He died at the scene, as did his five-year-old daughter Louise. Her twin Sophie suffered multiple injuries including a shattered pelvis, while three-year old Daniel spent over 24 hours in a coma. Mrs Thomas, 36, who practises law under the surname Weaver, remains unaware of the tragedy as she lies in a coma suffering from severe head and spinal injuries.

A Wimbledon neighbour said: "They were the nicest family you could possibly imagine, really sensitive and really caring. It is extremely distressing."

The Thomas family were on their way to a spring break at a resort in Hampshire when the smash happened at Nursling, Hants, midway between Southampton and the New Forest.

The Vauxhall's passenger side took the full force of the collision, when both vehicles were travelling at around 40 mph. Mrs Thomas and the two surviving children were cut from the wreckage and rushed to hospital for life-saving surgery.

Hampshire police have launched a full-scale investigation in an effort to determine how the accident could have happened. A spokesman insisted all possibilities were under consideration, including driver error and mechanical failure. The spokesman added that due to roadworks, a three-lane stretch of the M27 had been split into five lanes. Forensics teams will carry out extensive mechanical tests on the wreckage of the Vauxhall this week.

Sgt Chris Sweeney from the Hampshire police traffic unit said: "This has affected a wide family circle and they are devastated." The lorry driver, 40, from Poole, Dorset, is receiving counselling for extreme shock.

? Three young men were killed and two others left fighting for their lives after a head-on crash in Finchampstead, Berkshire, between a convertible Peugeot 306 and a Mini on Saturday. Police said that two Peugeot passengers were killed instantly, along with the male driver of the Mini. They are appealing for witnesses.