Toddler cries for lost mum
When Kayla Spiteri's 18-month-old daughter Nevaeh returned home after a day with her godmother, the mood of her family lifted instantly.
Her vibrant chirpy smile was enough to mask temporarily the pain they had endured for the past 18 hours.
But it didn't take long for the little one to realise Mum wasn't there.
The screams and tears began to mirror the emotions of her distraught and heartbroken family.
At 10pm on Sunday, 21-year-old Ms Spiteri was heading to her boyfriend's house in her orange Holden Commodore.
She was three-quarters of the way there when, as she turned from Tonkin Highway into Gosnells Road West, the only intersection along that stretch of road without a set of traffic lights, tragedy struck.
A white Holden Commodore T-boned Ms Spiteri's car, the impact carving it into two.
Residents described the crash as an almighty bang, but not one that was rare at the accident blackspot.
A 72-year-old man died in a crash at the intersection on January 20.
Emergency services acted quickly but Ms Spiteri could not be saved.
Police allege the driver of the other Commodore abandoned his damaged car and ran away.
A 20-year-old man was later taken to Armadale Hospital with leg injuries and police were alerted.
He was transferred to Royal Perth Hospital, where he had surgery and last night was in a stable condition.
Ms Spiteri's uncle said the death of his "bubbly and vivacious" niece had left his family devastated.
"They are very, very traumatised," Robert Ericksen said. "It is just so tragic to be taken so young."
Major crash investigators yesterday spent hours combing the scene, with debris strewn for up to 10m.
Police charged a 20-year-old Seville Grove man yesterday with failing to report an accident and failing to stop after the accident. They are also waiting on the result of blood tests taken in hospital.
Mr Ericksen said he hoped something would now be done at the intersection.
Yesterday, joined by other members of his extended family, he placed a cross at the accident scene.
"By putting a little cross there . . . maybe it just might remind people to take it easy down there," he said.
