Four University of Essex students died when their car crashed into a building after the driver lost control while driving at 94mph in a 30mph zone and over the alcohol limit, an inquest has heard.
Makyle Bayley, 22, Eva Darold-Tchikaya, 21, Anthony Hibbert, 24, and Daljang Wol, 22, died at the scene in Magdalen Street, Colchester, shortly before 4.40am on February 1. All four were born in London.
Essex Coroner’s Court heard on Friday that Bayley was driving the Ford Focus and had a blood alcohol level about 2.5 times the drink-drive limit. CCTV footage showed the car travelling at about 94mph, give or take 6.3mph, 170 metres from the crash site.
Senior coroner Lincoln Brookes said the medical cause of death for Bayley and Darold-Tchikaya was severe traumatic head injuries, and for Wol and Hibbert multiple injuries. He concluded all four died as a result of a road traffic collision.
Brookes said the vehicle hit a small island with its off-side wheel, crossed the opposite carriageway and footpath, hit steps outside a property, then turned and collided roof-first into a building. 'There was no possibility of these individuals ever being saved,' he said.
The coroner offered condolences to the families, who described the four as promising young people with 'a lot of potential and dreams for the future'.
