The mother and her two children who died in a crash on their way to a family holiday as her husband and 14-year-old son watched from the car in front were named today.
Jane Baker-Lockett, 43, and her children, 12-year-old twins James and Amy Gaskin, died in a collision with an M&S lorry while driving towards Barnstaple in Devon.
The family from the Milton Keynes area were believed to have been travelling to a holiday in two cars when the collision happened on the A361 near Aller Cross.
Neighbours paid tribute today to the family who had lived for a year in a four-bedroom terraced house in the Ashlands area of Milton Keynes.
'We pieced two and two together when we heard the news on Monday and worked out it was them. We knew they had twins and a white car.'
Another neighbour said: 'It is very sad. They haven't lived here very long. Probably about a year. They drive a yellow Kia and a white Kia Sportage.'
Police confirmed that the mother died at the scene and Amy was pronounced dead on arrival at North Devon District Hospital.
James was taken to hospital in an air ambulance but died shortly after his arrival following the collision in the car at about 8.25am on Monday.
A van driver who leapt out of his vehicle to try to help the family broke down in tears after failing to get the car door open, according to an emotional Facebook post.
His fiancƩe Leanne said: 'Him and my brother jumped out the van and tried their best to help but couldn't get the car door open, even with a crow bar.
'All he has (done) is cry at the image he has stuck in his head. Such an awful thing for the guy that has lost his family in a matter of minutes, my heart goes out to him.'
The road was closed for nine hours while officers from the Exeter-based serious collision investigation unit of Devon and Cornwall Police examined the scene.
A police spokesman said: 'The family were from the Milton Keynes area and were travelling in a separate vehicle from her husband and their 14-year-old son.'
Emergency services were called to the scene following what some police officers described as one of the most shocking crashes they had seen.
Inspector Richard McLellan said the father was in a different car on the same road.
He said: 'It would seem that a car travelling towards Barnstaple, for unknown reasons at the moment, has crossed the centre white line and hit an oncoming truck.
'Unfortunately the family were travelling in two separate cars but travelling together along this road, so dad was there at the scene as well.'
It comes after a similar incident on the same road on Sunday at 11.30am saw another mother and her two young children in a crash which left them all seriously hurt.
North Devon Conservative MP Peter Heaton-Jones declared the A361 - which is known locally as the North Devon link road - as 'unsafe' after the two crashes.
He told BBC Devon that motorists on the road are generally 'taking too many risks because there are short overtaking lanes that suddenly merge at not much notice'.
Mr Heaton-Jones, 53, said that he was working together with the area's local councils to 'get the money we need to get the improvements to this link road'.
He tweeted: 'Very sad to hear three people - a mother and two children - died in #NDevon Link Road crash. Thoughts with families and emergency services.'
Mr McLellan added: 'It seems at the moment we had two cars travelling towards Barnstaple - a family on holiday in the area - when for an unknown reason the vehicle had crossed the centre lines and collided with an HGV coming the other way.'
Three ambulances, five rapid response vehicles and the air ambulance attended the scene of Monday morning's crash.
A police spokesman said: 'A road closure has been put on at West Buckland junction and the Lankey junction on the A361 whilst officers conduct scene investigations.
'The closure is likely to be on all day and motorists are being advised to avoid the area.'
The carriageway was also closed in both directions to allow the air ambulance to land. Police are appealing for witnesses to the incident to come forward.
North Devon county councillor Brian Greenslade said he was saddened by the two tragic accidents on the A361 on Sunday and Monday.
He said: 'It is deeply upsetting that two tragic accidents have taken place so close to each other within the space of two days.
'Ours thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends caught up in the accidents.
'We think particularly about the mother and two children who have been killed on Monday.
'It's a matter of historic record that I have been a critic of the design of the link road ever since the promised dual carriageway link road was downgraded to single carriageway in the early 1980s.
'It is deceptive especially for drivers who do not use the road regularly. That continual lobbying for improvements, at the West Buckland junction in particular, are moving forward will be no solace to the those caught up in these crashes.
'We must all fight as hard as we can to get the improvements which have just been consulted upon in place just as quickly as possible.'
And an M&S spokesman told MailOnline on Monday: 'Our thoughts and sympathies go out to the family and friends of the individuals involved.'
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