Family's tribute to 'funny, outgoing and beautiful' Sunderland teenager Mia Marsh after death in A1231 crash

Seventeen-year-old Mia Marsh was due to become an auntie for the first time this year, but sadly lost her life in a collision just weeks before Christmas.

Northumbria Police were called to the stretch of the A1231 between the Northern Spire and Queen Alexandra bridges shortly after 1.20am on December 3, where a black Vauxhall Astra had left the carriageway and crossed the central reservation before colliding with fencing on the opposite side of the road.

Mia, from Hylton Castle, was pronounced dead at the scene.

‘Mia was a people person’

Issuing a tribute on Tuesday, January 17, her dad Gary, mum Danielle and sister McKenzie have paid tribute to the loving girl who would ‘go out of the way to help anyone’. A family statement said: “Mia was funny, outgoing and beautiful. She would light up a room and was one of a kind.

“We are devastated by what has happened. She was so looking forward to becoming an auntie and we can’t believe that she has been cruelly taken away from us, with her whole future ahead of her.

“Mia was a people person. She had just got a job at Footasylum, which she loved, and was also training at Hays Travel – working to help people and put a smile on their faces. She and her sister McKenzie were best friends, and Mia loved her dog Billy. We have so many treasured memories – holidays together in the caravan growing up, as well as going abroad to Disneyland, Greece and Bulgaria.

“She loved spending time with her boyfriend Konna, and she really enjoyed shopping, eating out and socialising. She would be constantly singing in every room she was in – you’d always hear her, even if you didn’t see her.

“As a family, we’ve been blown away by everyone’s response and the messages of support we’ve received – it’s been overwhelming. I’d like to thank everybody for their kindness and it shows how loved Mia was by everyone who knew her.”

Police appeal continues

An inquest into Mia’s death was opened last month and an investigation is ongoing into the circumstances surrounding the collision that led to her death, which saw three others injured.

An 18-year-old woman has been arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving and remains under investigation.

Inspector Sarah Munnelly, of Northumbria Police’s Motor Patrols Department, said: “Our thoughts remain with Mia’s family at this absolutely awful time and we’ll continue to offer them any support they need.

“Any death on our roads is incredibly sad, but it’s even more poignant when it involves somebody so young who had their whole life ahead of them. We will do everything we can to give Mia’s family the answers they deserve and would ask that everyone respects their privacy as well as our ongoing investigation. Please refrain from any speculation, either in the community or on social media, that could risk jeopardising the ongoing case.”

Anyone with information that may assist the investigation is asked to contact police via the ‘Tell Us Something’ page of our website or by calling 101 quoting log NP-20221203-0062.