Mourners gather to pay tribute to plane crash victims
Hundreds of mourners gathered together tonight at a memorial service held for a family and a teenage friend who died after their light aircraft crashed in a remote mountain region.
Sharif Booz, his wife Margaret O’Kennedy Booz, who were both in their 50s, their 14-year-old son Aymon and his friend Charlie Froud, also 14, all died in the crash on Saturday in mountains at Corriebracks, Donard, Co Wicklow.
More than 500 grieving members of the community crammed into St Mary’s Church, in Almondsbury, Bristol, to pay tribute to the four crash victims – who all lived within walking distance of the church.
Children who attend Marlwood School in Alveston – clung to each other in the church pews, with both boys and girls shedding tears over the loss of their friends.
Rev Philip Rowe opened the service with a prayer for the “beautiful family” before inviting every member of the congregation to walk to the altar and light a candle in memory of the Boozs and Charlie.
The altar soon filled up due to the volume of people attending, and many had to take their candles back to their seats.
Rev Rowe, Vicar of Almondsbury and Olveston with Aust, said the service at St Mary’s Church was held as an outlet for the community’s shock and grief.
“Emotions are running very high, and the service was held to give people a chance to come together to have their own thoughts and have support,” he said.
“It is a time of reflection.
“People were initially shocked by the news of the tragedy but now I think the shock is starting to wear off and people are very sad and upset.
“There will be a huge gap in the community.
“The Booz family were friends with so many people and on a public level they were involved with fundraising and village social events, so they will be greatly missed.”
Friend for around six years Richard Hope-Hawkins, from Clifton, Bristol, said Mr Booz, the son of an Egyptian surgeon, was a dedicated family man.
“I’m devastated, a good friend of mine and a whole family have been wiped out in an instant,” he said,“ he said.
“Sharif was one of the hardest working men I knew, he built his business from nothing and did it all for his family.
“I think Ayman was very keen to get into his father’s business and would help out and learn what he could.
“As a friend he was very understanding and generous and if I couldn’t reach him on his mobile I knew he would be out in his plane, it was his way of relaxing.
“I never took him up on it but he would always offer to fly down to France for the day or the south coast of Cornwall.
“They were a very welcoming family and always had their door open for anyone who needed help.”
The crash victims’ bodies are awaiting post-mortem examinations at Naas General Hospital.
The Piper PA-28 single engine plane was on its way from Gloucester to Co Kildare in the Irish Republic when it went missing around lunchtime.
Following a massive search operation, the wreckage of the aircraft was discovered by rescuers in a remote region in the west of the county, acting on information from a hill-walker.
