Man crushed to death in car during Storm Boelo whispered heartbreaking final words to girlfriend on phone

Man crushed to death in car during Storm Boelo whispered heartbreaking final words to girlfriend on phone EXCLUSIVE: James Abiwon, 29, was discussing his upcoming birthday plans when a tree fell onto his car. His girlfriend Aali has recalled hearing the crash and the desperate plea over the phone A heartbroken woman has recalled hearing her boyfriend cry for help over the phone after a falling tree crushed his car. James Abiwon, 29, died after the tree fell onto his car in high winds on Dollis Road in north London, during Storm Boelo at about 12.30pm on Sunday October 25. Police officers, paramedics, firefighters and an air ambulance attended, but James was pronounced dead at the scene. His girlfriend Aali Harvey said they had been discussing plans for his upcoming 30th birthday when she heard the crash. Aali told the Mirror: “He was talking about the padel event coming up for his birthday, he was mid-sentence then I heard a sudden crash. I didn’t know what it was at the time, I heard the crashing and all I heard next was him saying ‘help me, I’m bleeding’.” She spoke to a doctor at the scene to find out where James was, and then set off to reach him. She said: “The whole drive there I was expecting them to divert me to a hospital but they informed me there was an air ambulance. “I could hear him asking for water and at one point he said he was going in and out of consciousness. People at the scene were telling him to stay with us, keep talking to us.” Speaking of her state of mind when the fatal tragedy occurred. She added: “When I heard it unfold on the phone, I genuinely didn’t think it was going to be as bad as it was. I thought he was going to brush himself off and go home. “It was only when I heard there was an air ambulance on the way and they started asking for his mum’s number. I got really worried. Hearing the fire brigade cutting him out the car was the hardest part.” Aali added: “The main words I can use to describe James are just extremely hard working and talented. He was a gentleman, he was kind. He was a lover, everyone in his life felt very loved by him. His passing has shown how loved he was by everyone.” Clifford Sailsman, 58, was a first aider that held James in his arms during his final moments. He said he felt compelled to step in and help. Speaking to the Kilburn Times, he said: "The hardest thing is it all happened so fast, it was a moment of that day, that’s all I keep thinking of, and holding him. It’s having the emotion of holding a complete stranger but having a feeling of complete love from it, it was bizarre. It’s almost like I could feel he was a good person. It’ll stay with me for the rest of my life.” James, a solution sales specialist who gained a degree from the University of Essex, was described by his cousin as “a superhero”. His cousin Austin Okoloo told the Mirror: “He could do everything. He started in football and played for Aldershot Town and Boreham Wood. Then from there he went to university, but even at university he was boxing.” He added: “He was such a positive influence on everyone’s life, if you look at the family, he’s usually the foundation of why they start something. The way he died was an absolute tragedy. No-one expects to drive and have a tree fall on you. If he had drove a second slower, the tree may have hit his bonnet or the back of his car. It literally only fell on his driver's seat." Austin went to the scene as he struggled to believe his cousin had died. He said: “I was hoping that maybe I've got a reason or something to blame. I just didn’t want to believe it so I went to see it. He wasn’t even stationary under the tree, he was just literally driving his car. When I saw that I broke down because it became clear I have no one to blame.” James had been preparing to mark his 30th birthday with a padel tournament - the very event he was discussing with his girlfriend when the tree fell. The event will now go ahead in his memory. Austin recalled: “He said ‘I want to do something productive and look back at it and say that started on my 30th. He was so excited about this event. Because he’d done a lot of things in life and they didn’t work out for him. He hoped this one worked out for him.” Following James’s death, Austin shared the event online and said more than 4,000 tickets had been sold within 48 hours with thousands rallying to support James’ last dream. He said: “We’ve done over 4,000 plus ticket sales in just 48 hours. I’ve got a big platform and a lot of views, and I like to think my community supports me. So I just put it out there - with no date, no location and people are still buying tickets.” He added: “We hear UK’s bad vibes but that’s not what I’ve seen at all. People are buying tickets for a complete stranger and saying to me ‘I can’t make it but I’m going to buy a ticket’ it’s insane.” While his birthday celebrations will go ahead, the day will be a bittersweet day for his loved ones. Aali said: “I know that it would make him happy but it’s bittersweet because you don’t really want to celebrate and you don’t really want to do it without him but we know that he would want it to go on.” Police are working with the local authority and coroner to establish the exact circumstances surrounding James’s death. You can attend and support the event here