AYE accident: Victim's wife phoned siblings for help in car

Ms Oliver and her husband Mr Liong, who was killed in Monday morning's accident on the AYE. Ms Oliver's cousin said she was helpless in the car as she watched her husband gradually lose consciousness, adding: "They were married for eight years, and t
Ms Oliver and her husband Mr Liong, who was killed in Monday morning's accident on the AYE. Ms Oliver's cousin said she was helpless in the car as she watched her husband gradually lose consciousness, adding: "They were married for eight years, and they were very loving." PHOTO: VENNY OLIVER/FACEBOOK

The wife of Mr Jackie Liong Kuo Hwa, 37, who was killed after a Mercedes-Benz slammed head-on into their car on Monday morning, was still trapped in the car when she made two phone calls to her siblings overseas for help.

Ms Venny Oliver, 37, first called her younger sister in Australia and later, her older brother in the United States, her 57-year-old cousin told Chinese-language newspaper Shin Min Daily News yesterday. Her sister then informed her parents about the accident.

The couple were travelling in a Toyota Vios towards Tuas when the Mercedes-Benz - which was allegedly travelling against traffic flow - ploughed into their car.

Their car then veered across three lanes and flipped sideways, trapping Mr Liong in the driver's seat.

Ms Oliver was helpless as she watched her husband gradually lose consciousness, said her cousin.

He added: "They were married for eight years, and they were very loving. My cousin's husband would drive her every day to her office in Tuas. Even if she knocked off work late, he would wait to take her home."

Mr Liong, a television actor and event emcee, had to be extricated by the Singapore Civil Defence Force and was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.

Six family members, including Mr Liong's mother, arrived at the morgue at about 8am yesterday to identify the body.

They appeared composed but declined to speak to reporters, requesting privacy. They left about two hours later and returned at noon to finish the paperwork.

Yesterday, his 65-year-old mother told Shin Min that she was in Jakarta with her husband when she received a call from her in-laws saying that her son was "gone".

Mr Liong's father, also aged 65, said he hopes to find out how the accident happened so that the family could have some closure.

Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on December 21, 2016, with the headline AYE accident: Victim's wife phoned siblings for help in car. Subscribe