Family pay tribute to Chorley dad-of-two, 33, who died after a crash at the weekend

Christopher Bowker, 33, was the driver of a Seat Ibiza which crashed on the A666 in Darwen shortly before 8am on Saturday (February 19).

Emergency services were called to the scene in Blackburn Road and Christopher was taken to hospital with critical injuries.

He was sadly pronounced dead a short time later.

Police believe he lost control of his car and veered into the opposite carriageway, colliding with an oncoming Mitsubishi Outlander.

In a tribute, his heartbroken family said: "Christopher was a funny and loving person. He was so caring and would do anything for anyone. He leaves behind a son and daughter.

"Our family is understandably shattered. Life will never be the same again."

Two men who were passengers in the Seat were also taken to hospital with serious injuries, where they remain.

A woman, a passenger in the Mitsubishi, also suffered minor injuries.

A 38-year-old man from Nelson was arrested at the scene on suspicion of drug driving. He has since been released under investigation.

Lancashire Police are asking any witnesses who haven’t already spoken to an officer or anyone with dash cam footage to get in touch.

Footage can be uploaded here.

Sgt Martin Wilcock, of the Lancashire Police TacOps team, said: "First and foremost our thoughts are with Christopher’s loved ones and we send them our deepest condolences.

"Our thoughts are also with the two men seriously injured and their families at this difficult time.

"We are continuing to piece together exactly what happened and are asking anybody who witnessed the collision, or who has CCTV or dash cam footage from around the time of the collision to get in touch.

"We would ask that people do not speculate on what has happened while we investigate the exact circumstances of the collision."

Anyone with information can contact police on 101 quoting log reference 0319 of February 19.

Thanks for reading. If you value what we do and are able to support us, a digital subscription is just £1 per month for the first two months.

You will get unlimited access to hundreds of local news stories, exclusives, puzzles, 70% fewer ads and our Insider + Rewards offers. Try us today by clicking HERE.