Three generations killed in horror road smash as tributes pour in for tragic father and his pregnant daughter, aged 19
Tributes have been paid to a much-loved father and daughter who died following a road accident last Friday.
Tragically, it was also revealed that the teenage daughter was expecting a baby later this year, meaning three generations of the family have been lost.
Stephen Tooth, 40, was driving his daughter, 18-year-old Emily May Tooth, when his silver Suzuki was involved in a collision with a dark-coloured Subaru.
It occurred on the A823, near the junction with the A822 at Muthill in Perth and Kinross, Scotland.
The 40-year-old female driver of the Subaru was arrested in connection with a road traffic offence and police inquiries are ongoing.
Stephen was the only son of Margaret and David Tooth of Larbert. He attended Larbert Village School and Larbert High before making a career in audio-visual production, first with Tapestry AV and latterly with Catalyst based in Bridge of Earn. Stephen lived in Larbert, then Carronshore before moving to Gilmerton, Crieff.
Emily divided her time between Carronshore and Tullibody, and was a pupil at Clackmannan and Banchory Primaries, and Lornshill Academy, before going on to do a photography course at Forth Valley College in Stirling At college she met Callum Stewart, who lives in Stenhousemuir. They were planning to set up home together in the Falkirk area and both were looking forward to being parents later in the year.
Her own mother and stepdad, Holly and Rikki Drummond, sister Tegan and brother Jack are struggling to make sense of what has happened.
Through his work Stephen met Karen Johnston of Johnston Media and moved to the Crieff area, becoming stepfather to Siusaidh-Niamh and Abi Gayle, and part of another loving family. They were looking forward to a future together.
His family has revealed that the accident happened as Stephen was driving Emily back from Gilmerton to Tullibody before travelling by train to a work commitment In Manchester.
He was known to be a careful and very experienced driver and was also a keen motorcyclist.
Stephen’s parents, who are being supported by his sisters, Joan and Heather, who live in Stirling and Glasgow, said the accident has left four families heartbroken.
They added the gap left by the passing of Stephen and Emily is huge, as they have been inundated with many tributes from friends, colleagues, and everyone touched by their lives.
His parents said: “We are all in a state of shock. It has brought all the families together and knowing that our son and granddaughter are beyond pain and suffering is our focus.
"We are also proud of the impression their lives have made, and privileged that we had them with us.”
Alex and Lynsey McLaren of Tapestry AV said their entire team was devastated at the tragic news.
Lynsey said: “Stephen started with us back in May 2003 as a trainee AV technician and as an apprentice he learned all his trade working closely with his colleagues. Stephen quickly became an allrounder and he was the hardest worker.
"His can-do attitude meant he was approachable and everyone wanted Stevie involved in their projects. He developed a passion for creativity – he could turn his hands to anything from inhouse carpentry on bespoke stage sets to power distribution, audio, lighting and video systems.
"Stephen formed solid friendships with lots of his colleagues, he met Dom, Gary and Andy whilst working with us and they became best friends. Stephen was the go-to guy for all our international events, everyone wanted him on their events team.
“Stephen went on to pastures new in 2019, just before the pandemic, leaving Tapestry as technical project manager after 16 years with us. He was never far from us and kept in touch with the team, occasionally popping in to say hello.
“A funny story was that Stephen used to get lots and lots of parcels delivered from Amazon, they were addressed to Lord Tooth! It made everyone laugh.
Stevie was also at our warehouse all the time, it became his workshop for personal projects at night be there working on his motorbike or his BMW project car.
“Stephen was very much part of our Tapestry family and always will be, we will deeply miss him.”
Sergeant Steve Livesey, from the Tayside Road Policing Unit, said: “Our thoughts are with the family and friends of the deceased at this tragic time. We are conducting a thorough investigation into the circumstances and would appeal for anyone who witnessed the crash or has any dashcam footage from the area to please come forward.
“We are particularly keen to speak with anyone who believes they may have seen the silver Suzuki traveling along the road prior to the crash itself.” Any information should be given to police by calling 101, quoting incident 0783 of June 14.