- Lawrence Dallaglio has made a statement following the disappearance of Tom Voyce
- The 52-year-old compared the situation to a family tragedy he suffered as a teenager.
Lawrence Dallaglio has revealed how the recent disappearance of Tom Voyce has brought back painful memories of a family tragedy.
Voyce, 43, is feared dead after going missing during recent flooding from Storm Darragh.
The former flanker, who played nine times for England between 2001 and 2006, is said to have attempted to cross a swollen river in his car when he was believed to have been swept away by the current.
A police search has been ongoing since Sunday afternoon, when Voyce failed to return home after an evening out with friends.
Dallaglio wrote on
I myself experienced the same emotions when Francesca disappeared and was presumed dead.
‘His body was not recovered until four days after the Marquise sank. It’s a tragedy. I send you all my love x’
Dallaglio was just 17 years old when his sister Francesca died in the Marquise disaster on the River Thames in 1989.
Francesca was the youngest of the 51 people who died in the tragic incident in which the pleasure boat Marchioness sank after being hit twice by the Bowbelle in the early hours of August 20.
The former England captain later revealed he had been invited to the ship party but ultimately did not attend due to illness and detailed the effect the tragedy had on his family.
“Whatever happens in your life after that particular moment, it’s not really what it should be,” Dallaglio said in 2011.
‘We all had dinner as a family the night before. They also invited me to get on the boat, but I had a headache and decided not to go. It was just like me to turn down a party.
‘The next day, mom woke me up to tell me that my sister hadn’t returned. I immediately thought, “She’s probably dead. “She is a very sensible girl.”
‘The ship sank at 1 in the morning. If she wasn’t home by then, there had to be a very good reason. “It was horrible.”
More to follow