Birmingham crash: Taxi driver killed was 'loving' father-of-six who was due to celebrate child's birthday on Monday

Imtiaz Mohammed, 33, who was killed along with five other people.
PA
Francesca Gillett19 December 2017

A loving father-of-six who was killed in a deadly crash in Birmingham was due to celebrate his daughter’s birthday on Monday.

Three men were killed when they were thrown out of their car while a black cab driver and his two passengers, a man and a woman, died after the vehicle overturned onto its side.

The taxi driver, named locally as Imtiaz Mohammed, 33, had six children all aged under 15 and was described by his cousin Liaqat Ali as "caring" and "hard-working".

The underpass on the Lee Bank Middleway near Edgbaston where the crash happened.
PA

He was killed just minutes after his last job of the night, telling his wife he would be home for dinner, his brother said.

One of his children had been due to celebrate their birthday on Monday.

His younger brother Noorshad Mohammed said: "It was his last job of the night.

"That was the last time she spoke to him.

"He was going to come home - he rang his wife at 1am, and they were going to have something to eat.

The scene at the crash site on Sunday morning.
PA

"And then that was it.

"That was the last time they spoke."

Nassrin Bibi, Mr Mohammed's older sister, said the family had been "devastated" by the news, received at 5am on Sunday morning.

She said: "It's just so tragic and devastating, and there are no words really.

"We are just so sad and utterly shattered."

Mr Mohammed worked for local firm Castle Cars, which has offices both in Sandwell, West Midlands, and in Birmingham.

The road is likely to be closed off for all of Sunday.
REUTERS

Debbie Ormsby, in a statement on behalf of the cab company, said: "Imtiaz was a wonderful young hard-working family man.

"We were shocked and devastated to learn this morning that it was Imtiaz who lost his life in the serious road traffic collision which had been reported by our drivers in the early hours of Sunday.

"He was loved and respected by all who worked with him and he will be greatly missed.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and all the other families affected by this tragedy."

Police said they are following various lines of investigation including the condition of the road when the crash happened.

A fourth man remains in a critical condition at Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

Superintendent Sean Phillips, from West Midlands Police, told a press conference: "It is way too early to speculate on the causes of the accident.

"It will take some time to unpick the scene and just understand exactly what's happened. It would be unfair for me to speculate at this time."

He confirmed the road had been gritted at 5pm the previous evening.

Asked about the speeds the vehicles were travelling at, and whether all of those involved were wearing seatbelts, Mr Phillips said those will be issues considered during the investigation.

The Ambulance Service, which sent five ambulances and three paramedics to the scene, said it was astonishing that a man and woman in the first car were able to escape with minor injuries despite "extensive damage" to their vehicle.

Three other cars collided as they tried to avoid the scene at the entrance to the underpass.

Of those people, two were taken to Heartlands Hospital with minor injuries.

The ambulance service said they dealt with 13 patients in total. Police are working to contact families of those involved.

West Midlands Fire Service said 40 firefighters helped in the aftermath of the "horrific" crash, and were met with what they described as a "complex scene, spread over some distance".

The road is likely to remain closed throughout Sunday, police said.

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