A father in Rotherham spent three weeks at the hospital bedside of a teenager he believed was his son, only to later learn that his actual son had died in the same car crash, according to the BBC.
The identification error occurred following a fatal crash in the Rotherham area. Police mistakenly told the father that his son had survived the incident, BBC reports. The father "couldn't comprehend" the mix-up, the outlet said, as he sat vigil beside the wrong young man, unaware that his own child had already passed away.
An inquest into the crash heard that a teenager had been driving at 95 mph before the collision, which claimed two lives, according to thestar.co.uk. The high speed was cited as a factor in the severity of the wreck that left two people dead.
The Sun described the incident as a "bungling" error by police, while ITV News noted the father's "shock" upon discovering the truth. The Manchester Evening News also covered the story, emphasizing the three-week period the father spent at the wrong bedside before being told his son had died.
The case has raised questions about how the misidentification occurred and how the family was informed of the tragic news. The inquest is expected to examine the circumstances of the crash and the subsequent communication failures that compounded the family's grief.
What to watch next: Further testimony at the inquest may clarify how the identification error happened and whether any procedural changes will follow.
