Victim and fellow dog rescuer killed in Romania four-vehicle crash with eight of their ten dogs

From the Newshound archive · first published 25 September 2026 · last updated 28 September 2026.

Rachael Harvey-Purkiss, from Essex, and a woman from Northamptonshire, aged 61 and 41, died when their minibus collided with two trucks and a van on the DN 6 road in Caraș-Severin, near Romania's border with Serbia. The women had collected the dogs on behalf of Homeward Bound, a UK charity that rescues street dogs in Turkey. Paramedics pronounced both women dead at the scene; firefighters had to extricate their bodies from the wreckage.

Homeward Bound called the pair 'two beautiful rare diamonds' whose 'hearts were full of nothing but love and care for animals.'

Romanian police have launched a manslaughter investigation after initial reports suggested the minibus veered onto the wrong side of the road.

Drivers of the other vehicles were treated at the scene but did not need hospital treatment.