Bay of Plenty coroner Wallace Bain says he hopes his findings into the death of a Tauranga mother who died in a crash on State Highway 2 will offer her family comfort after their heartbreak.
On May 3, 2014, Tracey O'Brien died while driving herself and her two children, then aged 3 and 4, from Omokoroa to Mount Maunganui for a children's birthday party.
She had been driving a friend's car using a space saver wheel. Witnesses said they saw her reach over to the rear seats, where her children were sitting, when the car jerked into the other lane and crashed with an oncoming car near Loop Rd, Te Puna.
Ms O'Brien died. Her children were seriously injured.
'One cannot imagine the hurt ... it is hoped that these findings will provide some comfort and enable them to remember their daughter for the devoted mother that she was.