Dozens of mourners gathered in Middlesbrough on Monday for the funeral of 17-year-old Theo Rae, one of five young men killed in the A66 wrong-way crash that also claimed the lives of two Cleveland Police officers.
The service was held at St Bede’s Chapel at Teesside Crematorium, with a funeral cortege travelling through parts of the town before arriving at the venue.
Cleveland Police warned residents to expect disruption between about 1pm and 4pm, with Ladgate Lane, Ormesby Road, Cargo Fleet Lane and Acklam Road among the routes likely to be affected.
Several local schools closed early ahead of the service. Acklam Whin Primary School and Green Lane School were due to finish at 1.15pm, while Outwood Academy Acklam closed at 12.15pm and Newham Bridge Primary School at 1pm.
Superintendent John Wrintmore said the force had liaised with local authorities over traffic management and would provide a “proportionate visible police presence” to help ensure public safety during the gathering.
Rae died in the early hours of August 22 when a Volkswagen Passat travelling in the wrong direction on the A66 near South Bank collided with a marked police vehicle. All five occupants of the Passat and the two officers in the police car died at the scene.
The other young men killed were Cole Robert Worthy, also 17, Makai Saddington, 18, and 23-year-olds Jakub Matusiak and Michael Robert Cahill.
Police officers Matthew Blades, 37, and Tom Clough, 38, were also killed in the collision.
Monday’s service was the second funeral for one of the five young men. Hundreds of mourners attended a service for Mr Matusiak in South Bank on Friday, when schools also closed early because of expected congestion.
