Avinash Avinesh Chand was driving a group of country music fans to a festival in New Zealand when their van was allegedly hit on the side by a truck and pushed towards a power pole.

The horror crash took the lives of four people including Mr Chand, 31.

Stuff News reported that Mr Chand was driving a group to the Gold Guitar Awards festival when their van was hit on a rural Canterbury road in Ashburton on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand.

The 31-year-old was described as friendly, caring and kind. He was the co-owner of tour company Identity Tours Ltd and worked with disabled people.

With family and friends of Mr Chand still trying to come to terms with the fact that he was no more, close friend Peceli Bulivakarua told Fiji Sun it was absolutely upsetting and sad that Mr Chand left them.

“He will sorely be missed by many people because he helped so many people around Christchurch, New Zealand,” Mr Bulivakarua said.

He said Mr Chand also reached out to assist cyclone victims in Fiji.

“We did talk the previous night and early morning of the accident. He is a good person and I still can’t believe that he has left us.”

Another friend Sera Kumar said Mr Chand was someone who would always be there for his friends.

“He was someone who helped people in any way he could. He was a very friendly person and was always there for me,” Ms Kumar said.

“When he was traveling, he called and told me where he was going, I told him to go live and a few hours later I saw people posting.

“I went to his profile on Facebook and saw the post. I did not want to believe it because I talked to him a few hours earlier.

“I miss him and how I wish that this were just a dream and that when I wake up, he is still alive,” Ms Kumar added

Brother Visal Chand told Stuff News he learned of the incident through another brother who was visited by Police at work.

“He was just a blessing to his family and the community and everywhere that he went and the people he met. He was a big blessing in their life, he made a difference in everybody’s life that he met,” he said

Mr Chand moved to New Zealand over 10 years ago and was well known among Christchurch’s Fijian community.

Edited by Losirene Lacanivalu

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