“You were the glue that kept our family together, with a smile that lit up a thousand skies.”

“You were the glue that kept our family together with a smile that lit up a thousand skies.”

These are the words of the heartbroken family of Lewis Smith, who died following a collision on the A1(M) near Chester-le-Street on Sunday evening (April 26).

Lewis was a passenger in a Mercedes A Class which is believed to have struck the central reservation before coming to rest on its roof.

The 20-year-old, from South Shields, sustained life-threatening injuries and was taken to the Royal Victoria Infirmary, in Newcastle, for treatment.

Sadly, he died the following afternoon.

Today, his family have paid a touching tribute to Lewis, describing him as their “beautiful, sparkly blue-eyed boy who had a great respect for everyone”.

“We are heartbroken to say that Lewis sadly took his last breath at 3pm on Monday, April 27,” they said.

“Lewis, our beautiful, sparkly blue-eyed boy; you were your dad’s sunnn, and your mam’s voice of reason. You were the glue that kept our family together with a smile that lit up a thousand skies.

“He was a young lad, only aged 20, and had his whole life ahead of him. He already had a holiday booked for his 21^st to Ibiza in July and had only been back home for a few days following his first holiday away without family before this tragedy struck.

“He was the best big brother to his little sister, Ezzy, best aunty Lew to his niece, Revada, and, although the youngest brother of Stephen and Ryan, he was definitely the wisest.

“Lewis was a handsome young man with great respect for everyone. He had a heart of gold and wouldn’t hesitate to help someone in need and would always put a smile of the faces of the people he was with.

“He was a well-known lad in South Shields as he had an excellent attitude and was polite and well-mannered around everyone he met.

“He will be deeply missed by his dad (Smeg), mam, Kristen, his nine-year-old little sister, Esmée, his two older brothers, Stephen and Ryan, his five-year-old niece, Revada, his grandparents, uncles and aunties, cousins, as well as all his friends and the people he knew.

“We are all heartbroken and totally devastated by this loss. We all love you, son – you will be missed but never forgotten and will stay in our hearts and thoughts forever.

“Sleep tight our beautiful boy, may you rest in peace.”

The collision took place at around 10.50pm on the northbound carriageway and did not involve any other vehicles. 

The driver, 20-year-old Jordan Orrock, sadly died at the scene.

A second passenger, a man also aged 20, sustained serious injuries and was taken hospital for treatment. 

Officers would like to speak to anyone who witnessed the collision, or anyone who may have dashcam footage of the vehicle prior to the incident. 

Anyone with any information should contact the Serious Collision Investigation Unit by emailing [email protected], or call 101 quoting incident number 516 of April 26.