A Sussex family who have lost both of their sons are facing an “unimaginable” future after 20-year-old Edward Pearce was killed while changing a tyre on the A27 near Pevensey.
Edward, known as Bunty to his family and friends, was struck by a white Mercedes Sprinter shortly before 6.30am on July 13 as he stood beside his broken-down Volkswagen Caddy on the westbound carriageway approaching Golden Jubilee Way.
He died in hospital two days later. His parents, Amanda and Nick Pearce, had already lost their older son William to leukaemia 14 years ago.
“I don’t know how we carry on without him. I really don’t,” Mrs Pearce said. “It just doesn’t feel real. It doesn’t feel like the world could possibly be this cruel to take both of our boys.”
Edward had been driving to work in Brighton when he noticed the puncture. He telephoned his mother but insisted on changing the tyre himself because he feared being late.
It was the last time she spoke to him. When his location stopped moving on her phone, she realised something was wrong.
Police later went to the Pearces’ home while Mr Pearce was working abroad. Mrs Pearce was taken to hospital, but was unable to see her son because of the seriousness of his injuries.
Mr Pearce said Edward had lost part of his leg in the crash and that doctors had been unable to stop the bleeding at the scene. More than 50 people visited him in hospital, while his girlfriend, Arabella, slept in a chair beside his bed.
Edward died surrounded by those close to him and hospital staff formed a guard of honour in his memory.
Edward Pearce had already saved his brother’s life
The tragedy carried an especially painful echo for the family. When Edward was four, he donated bone marrow to William, who was undergoing treatment for leukaemia.
William had refused to attend a radiotherapy session so that he could walk his younger brother, whom he had helped nickname “Bunty”, into the operating theatre.
Despite Edward’s donation, William died two years later.
“He carried us through everything,” Mrs Pearce said of Edward. “He didn’t know it but he pulled us through Will’s death and now we’ve got nothing, nothing left.”
Edward had registered as an organ donor as soon as he was able. He re-registered when he obtained his driving licence, determined that there should be no doubt about his wishes.
After his death, six of his organs were donated, helping to save seven lives.
Mr Pearce said the brothers had been inseparable. Edward often wore a bandana because William had lost his hair during cancer treatment.
“Will and Bunt were so close,” he said. “Bunt always used to wear a bandana because Will had no hair after his cancer treatment. The two were inseparable.”
Edward was training to become a plumber and hoped to move to Australia with his best friend Toby once he had completed his qualifications.
His parents say they are now grieving not only the son they have lost, but the future they had expected him to have.
“We’ve lost all the hopes and dreams of what his future was going to be,” Mrs Pearce said. “All the adventures we won’t get to do. All of the fun. All of the holidays, from the proposal to the marriage to the buying of the first house to the grandchildren.”
She added: “Everything stopped on that day. On that Monday the 13th. It is so horrific. We’ve got nothing now. We’ve got a house with a playroom, two spare bedrooms, and just nothing, nothing at all now.”
Edward’s funeral was attended by hundreds of people, with mourners reportedly taking around an hour and a half to enter the wake. Friends also rode endurance motorbikes, one of his favourite hobbies, as a tribute.
People from Heathfield and the surrounding area spoke to the family about Edward’s warmth and generosity, including some whom his parents had never met.
His girlfriend said he had become her “everything” and described him as “a gentle soul with a big heart and even bigger smile”.
She said the couple had planned to travel to Australia and America, visit Las Vegas when they turned 21 and drive along Route 66 in cowboy boots.
“I will endlessly grieve a future we were meant to have together,” she said.
The driver of the Mercedes Sprinter, a 31-year-old man from Bexhill, was arrested on suspicion of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and drug driving. He has been released on bail while the investigation continues.
Sussex Police are appealing for motorists who passed the broken-down Volkswagen, or anyone with dashcam footage from the A27 at the time, to come forward. The force has asked witnesses to quote Operation Wickham. ([sussex.police.uk](https://www.sussex.police.uk/news/sussex/news/witness-appeals/appeal-for-witnesses-after-fatal-collision-near-pevensey/?utm_source=openai))
The Pearce family are raising money for the Children with Cancer Fund, which supported them during William’s illness and after his death.
