A teenage girl who died in a horrific car crash during a road trip to see singer Taylor Swift in concert had been listening to the superstar’s music when tragedy struck.
Mieka Pokarier, 16, was killed when the SUV she was travelling in with her mother and sister collided with a semi-trailer near Dubbo about 6pm on Thursday.
The family had been driving to Melbourne from the Gold Coast on the ‘trip of a lifetime’ to see Swift perform on the n leg of her Eras tour.
Mieka’s younger sister Freya Pokarier, 10, was seriously injured in the crash on Dunedoo Road, at Ballimore, and was airlifted to Westmead Hospital.
The screen of Mieka’s iPad, which remained eerily unscathed in the crash, shows she had the pop icon’s song ‘All of the Girls You Loved Before’ open in the moments before she died, according to The Daily Telegraph.
The song she had been listening to as part of her carefully assembled playlist was recorded during sessions for Swift’s 2019 album Lover, but was only released in March 2023 to mark the global launch of the tour Mieka was so excited to see.
Mieka Pokarier, 16, was travelling with her mother and younger sister to Melbourne from the Gold Coast to see Taylor Swift in concert when their SUV collided with a truck
Frozen on Mieka’s iPad screen, which remained unscathed, was the last song she had been listening to Swift’s track All of the Girls You Loved Before from her Lover album
Her younger sister Freya was airlifted to Westmead Hospital in Sydney by paramedics
The mother of the two girls, Kim Litchfield, who was driving the SUV, sustained several injuries and was taken to Dubbo Hospital.
The driver of the semi-trailer had minor injuries and was also taken to Dubbo Hospital in a stable condition.
Godmother to the sisters, Karleigh Fox, said Freya was fighting for life in a coma with brain injuries, a broken pelvis and a broken leg.
On Saturday night, Ms Fox gave an update saying both she and the girls’ father Peter Pokarier had flown to Westmead Hospital to be with Freya.
She said Ms Litchfield had been released from hospital and ‘reunited with her baby’.
‘We are playing her favourite Taylor Swift album “1989 Taylor’s Version” on repeat in her room and telling her about the merch we are seeing people buying on line,’ she posted online.
‘It takes five people just to roll her to check for marks which could turn to bed sores from being in the same position in her induced coma.’
Ms Fox said the family was struggling to ‘navigate even just learning the layout of the hospital, process the complex trauma to our little one’s organs and process the deep loss of our 16 year old’.
The sisters’ godmother Karliegh Fox said she along with the girls’ father and mother had travelled to Westmead and were by Freya’s side
The family were on the ‘trip of a lifetime’ to see Swift in Melbourne (pictured) and Sydney and had spent hours refreshing the ticket purchase page
‘We had some thorough chats with the incredible doctors about the prognosis and we are not out of the woods yet with risks of swelling in the brain and infection still evident. This could still be life threatening,’ she wrote.
‘We were amazed to learn that our darling had eight blood transfusions plus other blood products by the ambulances on site.
‘One unit is one donation, so if you have time this week please go and donate at your local blood bank – what a priceless gift you can give for free to humanity.
‘All medical staff need a raise and we are beyond grateful to Ronald McDonald House for giving four of us in hospital accommodation.
‘Any time you go drive through Maccas throw some change in the McHappy Day box because these guys just saved us so many logistical nightmares navigating supporting our girl in a town not of our own.
‘We are keeping our girl in an induced coma for a few more days in order to give her body a chance to stay still and hopefully recover as much as possible.’
Emergency crews attend the scene of the crash on Thursday near Dubbo
Ms Fox added that the family were preparing for when Freya regains consciousness.
‘We will then see a whole lot of anxiety and distress from her and potential carer burnout for Mama, as that’s the person our girl is going to want the most,’ she said.
‘Mama is still very sore, bruised up and slow. Dad and big sis are amazing and we are all working together as a team navigating this process.
‘We are so lucky we are in the medical system into be so well cared for.
We wish we had access to our 16 year old and hoping to be reunited within weeks to start our celebration of life that we haven’t even started planning yet. Things you never think you’ll have to do.’
Mieka was understood to have been sitting in the front passenger seat when the crash occurred.
On Saturday, Mieka and Freya’s father, Peter Pokarier, shared his grief on Facebook.
‘That’s my baby that died,’ he wrote.
Thick black smoke was seen rising from the highway where the SUV and truck collided
The Gold Coast-based family were heading down to Melbourne ahead of Swift’s sold-out concert at the MCG.
The pop superstar kicked off the n leg of her Eras tour in Melbourne on Friday night with around 96,000 fans in attendance.
Images from the scene of the crash show plumes of thick, black smoke rising into the sky.
A GoFundMe page was set up on Friday to raise money for the shattered family.
‘The family have all had to cease work to fly down and I’m trying to get a flight to support the mum as she’s alone in Dubbo until we can get her to Sydney,’ Ms Fox said.
‘Funds will be used to function in this challenging time.’
Mr Pokarier, the girl’s father, also shared a link to the GoFundMe.
He said his family is ‘what I live for, I’m devastated’.
Tributes have also flowed from friends on social media.
Cheyenne Craig said Mieka was learning to drive.
‘How is it fair that someone as sweet and beautiful as you was taken away from us so soon?,’ she wrote to social media.
‘Mieka was the sweetest, most down to earth person you could’ve ever had the privilege of knowing, her stupid jokes that always made no sense but somehow always made you laugh… and the way we would spend the entire day talking about concerts.’
Swift is in for her Eras tour and played her second night at the MCG in front of around 96,000 fans on Saturday
Both sisters had been part of the Gold Coast Youth Theatre Academy.
Simone Medland also said Mieka was passionate about music and concerts.
‘I was so happy to see you happy living your life and going to concerts. You deserved to be happy and there are so many people that care about you.,’ she said.
‘I wouldn’t trade these last few years I had with you for the world and I wish I could just see you once more. We had so many plans of things we needed to do together and it’ll always be my biggest regret that we never got the chance to.’
NSW Police said in a statement that a crime scene was set up as officers continue to investigate the incident.
A report will be prepared for the coroner.
Daily Mail has contacted the Sydney Children’s Hospital Network for comment.