New baby joy will help ease the heartache for a family haunted by tragedy.
Amie Tiffin has suffered more grief in her 30 years than anyone should face in a lifetime. Her family was devastated in 2006 when her little brother Adam died after plunging 26ft to the ground from scaffolding, near their Washington home.
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Then last year Amie's beloved mum Paula, who never got over her son's death, was killed when the car she was in ploughed into the wall. The tragedy could have ripped the surviving members of the Tiffin family apart when it emerged that the car was being driven by Bradley Webb, the brother of Amie's partner Jimmy.
But now, Amie, who discovered she was pregnant two weeks after her mum died, finally has some hope for the future as she looks forward to the arrival of her new baby girl.
And the 30-year-old has today told how her unborn child has given her a reason to live during the darkest of days.
Amie said: "I feel like my mam has sent this baby, and that's what comforts us. That's what's keeping me focused, and that's what gets me through the days.
"It's just so sad that my mam will never meet her."
Amie's childhood was one lived surrounded by sadness. Adam's horrific death came just weeks after Paula's baby daughter Angel was stillborn.
However, the mum-of-11 battled through the unimaginable pain for the sake of her other children.
But Paula's own life was cut tragically short last August after she suffered catastrophic injuries when she was a front seat passenger in Webb's car, which smashed into a wall, in Houghton-le-Spring, as he tried to flee police.
Webb, 25, of Queens Street in Hetton-le-Hole, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving, causing serious injury by dangerous driving, driving without insurance, driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence and failing to stop.
In December he jailed for six years and eight months at Newcastle Crown Court. Amie attended the sentencing hearing knowing she was carrying a child fathered by the killer driver's brother.
"I was quite poorly in the beginning," she said. "It was really stressful. I haven't grieved yet. I couldn't get my head round that it was real. I think I could have ended up going down a bad path but I didn't."
Now 33 weeks pregnant, Amie found out she as was expecting a girl at her 20 week scan.
She plans to call the baby Layla Jean Webb after her nana Jean who also died last year.
"I feel like this baby will bring the family back together," she said. "My mam's wish was for my Nana's name to live on.
"My mam would have been absolutely over the moon. She loved kids and she loved her grandkids. She would have doted on this one. She would have loved having another baby around. She loved the nana role."
And Amie, from Hetton-le-Hole, plans to make sure her daughter knows all about the family members she's lost.
"I have still got my mam's ashes," she said. "Once I have had the baby we are going to take the baby down to Adam's grave and do something there for my mam and my nana.
"I have got pictures all over my house. This baby will know her nana is a star in the sky."
Paula was a happy devoted mum before Adam's death 15 years ago.
Adam had been playing out with his big brother Dylon when he scaled the scaffolding, near his home in Roche Court.
Dylon ran home to tell his mum that Adam had fallen and Paula raced to where her boy was. But there was nothing she could do to save him, and Adam died in her arms.
Paula admitted to the Chronicle in 2009 that she had blamed herself for allowing Adam to go out that day.
However, the construction firm that erected the scaffolding for a one-off repair but left it there for 11 days, admitted responsibility for blunders which led to the tragedy. Lovell Partnerships Limited was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive and fined £75,000 for a breach of safety regulations, after bosses admitted its role in Adam’s death.
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