THE DEVASTATED family of a teenager killed in an horrific car crash in Essex last night said “a massive part” of their lives had been taken away.

James Hore

THE DEVASTATED family of a teenager killed in an horrific car crash in Essex last night said “a massive part” of their lives had been taken away.

Charlotte Blackburn died after a silver car mounted a pavement in Main Road, Dovercourt, in the early hours of Monday morning.

The popular teenager, who lived locally, was taken to Colchester General Hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Another teenager suffered minor injuries after being struck by the car.

Two men from the Harwich area, both 20, were arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving and have been released on police bail until later this year.

Charlotte's family said yesterday they were devastated but had been taking strength from the messages of support.

In a statement, they said: “A massive part of our life has gone, and she can never be replaced. She will be sadly missed.

“We have drawn comfort from the many calls of support from her friends and our family.”

The outgoing teenager enjoyed socialising and partying with her friends.

Charlotte's brother, Aidan, 16, said: “She was always there for me. We used to share our secrets”.

Charlotte was born in Colchester and spent her early years living in Bathside, Harwich.

She then moved with her family to Little Oakley where she attended Little Oakley Primary School, before attending Great Oakley Primary School.

Charlotte then went to The Harwich School before studying tourism at Colchester Institute.

She was keen on skiing when on family holidays, and loved being out in the sun.

Her father, Neil, said: “She was always the life and soul - she was a very strong personality.”

Charlotte wanted to combine her work with travel and was due to go to Slovenia next month on a course in connection with her studies.

She had intended to learn to drive and loved being out with her friends in Harwich.

An 18-year-old man was also struck by the car during the incident but escaped with just minor injuries and was treated at the scene by paramedics.

The car involved in the accident also crashed through a wall and into a house in Main Road, causing major damage.