Family warns after son dies in horrific accident while on holiday in Turkey

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A heartbroken family whose 26-year-old son died in a “horrific” accident in Turkey is pleading with other families.

Matthew Steward, the son of Lisa and Gavin Steward from Harwich, Essex, died in the early hours of May 14, 2024, after the quad bike he was riding with his friend Cory Dove, 26, collided with another vehicle in Turkey.

His family is now warning others not to use these vehicles as they believe they are “dangerous” and “not worth it”.

Matthew had travelled to Fethiye for a family holiday on May 12, 2024. He spent the holiday with his 24-year-old partner Dannielle Rose, a carer, as well as her daughter Ruby (6) from a previous relationship and her son Roman (3).

On the night of May 13, Dannielle said, Matthew and Cory left the hotel to ride the quad bike to a store – and hours later she received news that they had died and she and Cory’s partner needed to identify the bodies.

Matthew’s family has been looking for answers.

Lisa, 42, Gavin, 44, and Dannielle are now raising funds to cover any legal and other costs, such as a lawyer and a translator, and to purchase a headstone for Matthew.

They urge other families not to use quads because “nobody needs this grief.”

Speaking about the impact of his death, Lisa said: “Dannielle can’t go home at the moment, she’s finding it very difficult to go home and we are just heartbroken, absolutely heartbroken. Absolutely devastated.”

“He has a twin brother, James, and they did everything together. They didn’t have many friends, they had each other, and he just said, ‘My life is over, my other half is gone.’

“We just have to keep going for him and the kids. It’s just heartbreaking.”

Lisa, Gavin and Dannielle described Matthew, who worked at a local electrical manufacturer, as charitable, outdoorsy, caring and shy.

His favorite hobby was metal detecting—which inspired him and Dannielle’s name for their son, Roman—and he enjoyed “spending days at the beach with the kids” and camping and fishing in his free time.

The “hands-on dad” met Dannielle at school and the two remained friends for years. They each later had their own relationships and children, but she said their relationship was “meant for each other.”

As a Christmas present for the couple, Dannielle’s parents booked a family holiday to Turkey – and the couple flew off on May 12, 2024, together with Ruby and Roman, full of anticipation for the upcoming ten-day trip.

Dannielle said Matthew’s friend Cory came along with his family and rented a quad bike after they arrived in Turkey because he already had experience driving these vehicles.

Late in the evening of May 13, Dannielle said, Matthew and Cory, who was driving the quad, decided to drive the vehicle to a repair shop – and that led to the fatal collision, which Gavin described as a “total disaster.”

Dannielle said: “Around midnight these ladies came, knocked on the door and told me there had been an accident and they were both dead.

“The Jet2 representative said, ‘You have to come with me now to identify the bodies. You have to get dressed’ … and she said if you don’t come and identify the bodies, the army will come and forcibly remove you.

“Then they got us in the car and off we went.”

On May 15, Dannielle’s parents flew to Turkey and agreed to lay flowers at the accident site – but Dannielle said they were taken to the “wrong crash site.”

“They laid flowers where the accident happened, and as far as Dannielle knew, she laid flowers at the resting place,” Lisa said.

Lisa and Gavin then flew to Turkey on May 16, determined to get “answers” and asked to visit the crime scene as well – but when they arrived, they thought: “This can’t be happening.”

They said there was no evidence of a crash, but with the help of their friend who lived in Turkey and was able to translate for them, it was discovered that the site was “further up” – and they later placed fresh flowers there.

“We continue up where we find obvious blood, police tape, blood splatter on the rocks and on the road, parts of the bus, parts of the quad and personal items,” Lisa said.

“I managed to find two different pools of blood. Later I went to a florist, bought fresh flowers and laid them there.”

Lisa and Gavin said they were initially told that Cory and Matthew had collided with a bus, but later found out – again with the help of their friend – that it was actually “a hotel bus.”

They said they were unable to see their son in Fethiye because the body had been transferred to Antalya, but were told that an autopsy revealed the cause of death to be intracerebral hemorrhage.

After Matthew’s body was flown to Stansted Airport on May 21, his parents were told after another autopsy that the cause of death was in fact “multiple traumatic injuries.”

They said they hadn’t received his passport yet either.

Lisa said: “It has been an absolutely traumatic time anyway and you can imagine how we feel.

“It was one lie after another. We had four weeks of hell, absolute hell.”

An inquest into the deaths of Matthew Steward and Cory Dove was opened at Essex Coroner’s Court and adjourned to 12 June 2024.

According to the BBC, the hearing heard that the friends from Harwich were involved in a road traffic accident with another vehicle in the early hours of May 14, 2024 and succumbed to their injuries.

Essex Chief Coroner Lincoln Brookes said a full hearing would take place in February 2025, the BBC reported.

Since the collision, the family and Dannielle have launched a fundraiser to cover the legal and other costs they have been charged, which they estimate to be in the thousands of dollars, and to purchase a headstone for Matthew.

They hope to place the headstone at Dovercourt Cemetery in Harwich so that family, friends and children can visit and pay their final respects.

They are releasing lanterns in Matthew’s memory and are planning a July 4 funeral that will be a “celebration” of his life. They said spending time together as a family is helping them cope with their grief.

Lisa said: “As a mother you have to protect your children and I can’t do that for him – that’s the hardest thing for me, I can’t make it better for him, I can’t do anything.

“Families need to be aware that quad biking is considered an extreme sport and is therefore not insured.

“These quads are dangerous. Don’t ride them, nobody needs that grief. It’s not worth it.”

A Jet2 spokesman said: “Our teams have provided full support and assistance to Ms Rose following this tragic incident and we would like to extend our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those who died.

“After the incident, our teams were on site to help translate the instructions on behalf of the Turkish authorities.”

For more information about the fundraiser, visit GoFundMe.