A teenager who died in a horrific car accident during a road trip with her family to see Taylor Swift in concert had been listening to the superstar before the tragedy occurred.
The screen of 16-year-old Mieka Pokarier’s iPad, who remained eerily unharmed in the collision, shows she had the pop icon’s song ‘All of the Girls You Loved Before’ on in the moments before her death.
The SUV he was traveling in with his mother and sister collided with a semi-trailer near Dubbo as they drove to Melbourne from the Gold Coast on a dream trip to see Swift perform on the Australian leg of her Eras tour.
The song Mieka had been listening to, as part of her carefully crafted playlist, was recorded during the sessions for Swift’s 2019 album Lover, but wasn’t released until March 2023 to mark the global launch of the same tour as Mieka. I was so excited to see.
Her younger sister, Freya Pokarier, 10, was seriously injured in the accident around 6pm on Thursday. Dunedoo Road in Ballimore and He was airlifted to Westmead Hospital.
Mieka Pokarier, 16, was traveling 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 heard, Swift’s song All of the Girls You Loved Before from her album Lover.
Her younger sister, Freya, was flown to Westmead Hospital in Sydney by paramedics.
The mother of the two girls, Kim Litchfield, who was driving the SUV, suffered several injuries and was also taken to Dubbo hospital.
The sisters’ godmother, Karleigh Fox, said Freya was fighting for her life in a coma with brain injuries, a broken pelvis and a broken leg.
On Saturday night, Fox gave an update saying that both she and the girls’ father, Peter Pokarier, had flown to Westmead to be with Freya and that their mother had also been discharged from Dubbo Hospital and was had been “reunited with her baby.”
“We’re playing her favorite Taylor Swift album ‘1989 Taylor’s Version’ over and over in her room and telling her about the merchandise we see people buying online,” he said.
“It takes five people to roll her over and check for marks that could turn into sores from being in the same position during the induced coma.”
Ms Fox said the family was struggling to “navigate even knowing the layout of the hospital, processing the complex trauma to our little one’s organs and processing the profound loss of our 16-year-old son”.
The sisters’ godmother, Karliegh Fox, said she, along with the girls’ father and mother, had traveled to Westmead and were at Freya’s side.
The family were on the “trip of a lifetime” to see Swift in Melbourne (pictured) and Sydney and spent hours updating the ticket purchase page.
‘We’ve had some extensive conversations with amazing doctors about the prognosis and we’re not out of the woods yet, as the risks of inflammation in the brain and infection are still evident. This could still be life-threatening,” he stated.
‘We were surprised to learn that the ambulances on the scene had given our dear eight transfusions of blood and other blood products.
One unit is one donation, so if you have time this week, 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 providing hospital accommodation for four of us.
‘Every time you drive through Maccas, throw some change in the McHappy Day till because these guys just saved us so many logistical nightmares navigating supporting our girl in a city that’s not our own.
“We will keep our girl in an induced coma for a few more days to give her body a chance to lie still and hopefully recover as much as possible.”
Emergency crews are called to the scene of the accident near Dubbo on Thursday.
Fox added that they are preparing for when Freya is conscious.
“Then we will see a lot of anxiety and anguish on her part and possible exhaustion of mom’s caregiver, since that is the person our girl is going to love the most.”
‘Mom is still very sore, bruised and slow. Dad and big sister are amazing and we are all working together as a team to navigate this process.
‘We are very lucky that in Australia the medical system is so well cared for.
We want access to our 16 year old son and hope to meet in a few weeks to begin our celebration of life that we haven’t even begun to plan yet. Things you never think you’ll have to do.
It was learned that Mieka was sitting in the passenger seat when the accident occurred.
On Saturday, Mieka and Freya’s father, Peter Pokarier, shared his grief on Facebook.
“That’s my baby that died,” she wrote.
Thick black smoke was seen rising from the road where the van and truck collided.
The driver of the semi-trailer suffered minor injuries and was taken to Dubbo Hospital in a stable condition.
The Gold Coast-based family were heading to Melbourne before Swift sold out. Concert at the MCG.
The pop superstar kicked off the Australian leg of her Eras tour in Melbourne on Friday night with around 96,000 fans in attendance.
Images from the scene after the crash show plumes of thick black smoke rising into the sky.
TO GoFundMe The page was set up on Friday to raise money for the devastated family.
“The whole family had to stop working to fly and I’m trying to get a flight to help the mother as she is alone in Dubbo until we can get her to Sydney,” Mrs Fox said.
“The funds will be used to function during these difficult times.”
Pokarier, the girl’s father, also shared a link to the Go FundMe.
He said his family is “what I live for, I’m devastated.”
Tributes have also poured in 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 from us so soon?’ he wrote on social media.
“Mieka was the sweetest, most down-to-earth person you would ever have the privilege of meeting, her stupid jokes that always didn’t make sense but somehow always made you laugh… and the way we had fun with each other. the whole day talking about concerts.’
Swift is in Australia 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 Theater Academy.
Simone Medland also stated that Mieka is passionate about music and concerts.
‘I was very happy to see you happy living your life and going to concerts. “You deserve to be happy and there are so many people who 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 see you one more time. “We had so many plans for things we needed to do together and it will always be my biggest regret that I didn’t get the chance to do it.”
New South Wales Police said in a statement that a crime scene has been set up as officers continue to investigate the incident.
A report will be prepared for the coroner.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted the Sydney Children’s Hospital Network for comment.