A man who survived a killer car crash that claimed the lives of three people has been pictured for the first time.
Shane Loughlin, 32, and Sophie Russon, 20, were pulled from a wrecked vehicle two days after the horror collision in Cardiff on March 4.
The pair were found off the A48 and taken to hospital with serious injuries following an extensive 46-hour search, which came after they were reported missing at the end of a night out.
The Volkswagen Tiguan they were travelling in had left the road and smashed into nearby trees, leaving multiple occupants trapped inside the vehicle.
Their friends Eve Smith, 21, Rafel Jeanne, 24, and Darcy Ross, 21, all passed away shortly after the crash.
Now, almost two months on, Shane has been seen smiling in a surprise snap shared on Facebook by one of his close friends.
The post was titled 'Shane Loughlin', and was additionally captioned with two red hearts as the 32-year-old could was seen making a pointing gesture towards the camera in bed.
In an earlier statement released through his friend's page on March 10, Shane thanked everyone who helped with the search party and said it would be a "long way to recovery mentally and physically but we’ll get there."
He also paid tribute to his friends who died and said he was "gutted" after finally discovering what had happened.
Last weekend, Sophie's mum Anna Certowicz meanwhile branded the police's handling of the case and their treatment of victims’ families as "appalling".
The 40-year-old, who is currently nursing her daughter back to health, told the Mirror that officers were far too casual and ignored their fears when they reported the pals missing.
She said: "If they got there sooner, we don’t know, but maybe they could have survived.
"The police did not do enough – it wasn’t until people started posting on social media that they paid us any attention. They had calls from me, Sophie’s dad and all the other families, but they were very blasé and said they’re probably out partying."
Sophie was found semi-conscious outside the wrecked car, as medics later established she had bruising on her brain and a build-up of fluid, which was drained in 14-hour surgery.
She also had a broken arm and leg fractures, and has been put in a back brace to make sure her bones set correctly.
Sophie moved to a specialist rehab unit in mid-April, where Anna says she is doing well.
