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A chef from Glasgow is among those killed in a crash on the M6 in Cumbria, which police say may have involved a car travelling in the wrong direction.
Jaroslaw Rossa, 42, was pronounced dead at the scene near Tebay services on Tuesday, alongside a 33-year-old woman and two boys, aged 15 and seven.
They were all from Glasgow and had been travelling on the motorway in a Toyota. The driver of a Skoda, a 40-year-old man from Cambridgeshire, also died.
Wagamama CEO Thomas Heier said Mr Rossa’s colleagues at the Silverburn shopping centre were “heartbroken” and called him a “cherished chef and friend”.
Chris Isles
The collision happened on the northbound carriageway on Tuesday at 16:04.
Cumbria Police said it had been called out to reports of a Skoda travelling southbound on the northbound carriageway.
A third child – a seven year-old boy who was also in the Toyota – was airlifted to the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle by air ambulance with serious injuries.
Though Mr Rossa has yet to be formally identified by police, his employer released a statement paying tribute to him – and the “huge impression” he had made while working at Wagamama Silverburn over the last eight years.
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Mr Heier said Mr Rossa had formed “unforgettable relationships with the team members and guests who had the pleasure of knowing him”.
He added: “His warmth, dedication and kindness are the characteristics of Jaroslaw that will stay with the team long after his passing.”
“We send our most sincere and heartfelt condolences to his family, for which we know he was deeply devoted to.
“Jaroslaw, you will live in our hearts and minds forever.”
Eyewitnesses told BBC News they were stuck in stationary traffic near the crash for more than three hours and could “see black smoke and flames”.
The motorway shut from junction 36 to junction 39 and reopened fully in the early hours of Wednesday.
Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service said it sent four fire engines from Penrith, Kendal and Shap and remained at the scene of the crash for several hours.
As well as the Great North Air Ambulance, North West Ambulance Service and volunteer Beep Doctors were also in attendance.
Police have appealed for eyewitnesses and anyone with information to come forward.
