FRIENDS and colleagues of a Kent family torn apart by the death of their daughter in a coach crash in Austria are struggling to come to terms with the tragedy.

Floral tributes have been placed outside Tonbridge fire station following the death of 16-year-old Rebecca (Becky) Earland, killed when a coach carrying 42 British holidaymakers plunged off a mountain road in the Alps last week.

Her father, Geoff Earland, 48, is a divisional officer with Kent Fire and Rescue Service. He and his wife Celia, a nurse, suffered serious injuries in the crash. Their son, Nathan, 17, suffered minor injuries. All three remain in an Austrian hospital.

Mrs Earland’s condition was “critical”. The accident happened on the day she was celebrating her 48th birthday.

The family home is in Thope Avenue, Tonbridge. Rebecca, a keen horse rider, was a pupil at Hillview School for Girls, Tonbridge, where she had just sat 10 GCSEs. She was on a family holiday ahead of the results which are about to be published.

Hillview head teacher Stephen Bovey said: “Rebecca’s friends particularly have found the news very difficult to handle. It’s going to be very hard on results day.”

One tribute outside the fire station read: “Becky, you were a great friend to us and you are always and forever in our hearts.” Rebecca worked at Perfect Pizza in York Parade, Shipbourne Road, with Nathan. Their colleague Mike Mirza said: “She was a very sweet girl. Everybody is very sad.”

Mr Earland works at Maidstone fire station and has been with the brigade for 30 years. The driver of a minibus reported as trying to overtake the coach, named as Johan Prettenthaler, 70, has been charged with causing death by negligence.

The others who died were David Hamilton, 33, from Bournemouth; Marian Ashby, 80, and her son, Robert Ashby, 60, from Hatfield, Herts, and mother-of-three Claire Patel, 39, from Amersham, Bucks.