HEARTFELT tributes have been paid to a ‘wonderful and selfless’ man who brought laughter and joy to friends and family, after he died in a crash on the A35.
Officers attended along with firefighters and ambulance crews, but Douglas was pronounced dead at the scene.
Another man, aged in his 30s and from London, was taken to the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital with serious injuries, but they are not believed to be life-threatening.
Following his death, dozens of tributes have been paid to Douglas with many people describing him as a ‘wonderful’ man with an ‘amazing soul’.
Douglas, who emigrated from Ghana with his three brothers in 2010 and lived in Plymouth, was known by many as YouTuber ‘DLuxx’ who shared reaction videos to his 102,000 subscribers.
"He was so selfless and a giver" - Moving tribute from family
His brother Chris recalled how Douglas ‘enjoyed making people around him see reason and laughter’ and loved to entertain others.
Chris said: “He was so selfless and a giver. He just loved to jump onto his seat and couldn't wait to turn on his camera.
“He formed a serious relationship with his channel on YouTube that was impressive, and to me, I envied him for that. I always say, how can such a shy boy be so vocal when on camera.
“He had made 977 videos with each being four minutes long or more, and wasn't making any money, but he never quit.
“Now you tell me if that isn't selfless.”
Chris shared how his brother loved going to the gym and morning runs, and how passionate he was about everything he did.
He said: “We will forever remember him as the guy who brought laughter and joy to our family.
“His place can never be taken. His seat is indefinitely preserved.
“We thank him for his contributions to this family as a son, brother, uncle and above all, our best friend.
“To me, it was an honour serving this life side by side as brothers and hopefully, we would get to that again.”
“Oh, he was handsome too. He would kill me if I forgot that.”
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Fundraiser for 'wonderful' Douglas
A fundraiser has also been set up to help pay for his funeral. With a fundraising target of £5,000, more than £2,000 has already been raised from dozens of donations.
A tribute reads: “26-year-old Douglas from London was a wonderful brother, loving son, best uncle, a fantastic friend and a YouTuber.
“He brought loads of laughter and joy to thousands of viewers he's never met across the globe.
“Douglas was full of life, constantly making those around him feel special. Anyone who came across him had whims of his endless jokes and funny reasoning.
“He would always be the first to help those in need, even when he had nothing.”
Police investigations into fatal crash continue
A spokesman for Dorset Police confirmed that investigations into the collision are ongoing and are appealing for witnesses or anyone with relevant dashcam footage to come forward.
Sergeant Rhys Griffiths, of the traffic unit, said: “Our thoughts are with the family of the man who sadly died and we owe it to them to carry out a full investigation into the circumstances of this collision.
“I would ask any witnesses to the manner of driving of the silver Astra prior to the collision to please contact us. From our enquiries we understand the vehicle had travelled west from Bridport along the A35 and has distinctive Isle of Man number plates.
“I am also keen to hear from anyone who was driving on the A35 between Lyme Regis and Raymond’s Hill from around 5.30am to 6am on the morning of the collision who has dashcam footage of their journey, as it may assist our investigation.
“Finally, I appreciate this collision resulted in the closure of a major route for a significant period of time and I want to thank the public for their patience and understanding.
“The closure is absolutely necessary to allow the emergency services to respond to the incident and for an examination of the scene to be conducted.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact Dorset Police at www.dorset.police.uk, via email 101@dorset.pnn.police.uk or by calling 101 quoting incident number 31:203.
Alternatively, to stay 100 per cent anonymous, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers online at Crimestoppers-uk.org or call Freephone 0800 555 111.
- Did you know Douglas? Would you like to share a tribute or special memory of him? Email me at michael.taylor@newsquest.co.uk or tweet @JournoMikeT
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