The husband of a British woman killed in Australia on Boxing Day said he had spent the past year putting his grief aside to be ‘the best parent I can be’.
Emma Lovell, 41, died after being stabbed when intruders broke into her family home in North Lakes, Brisbane, on 26 December 2022.
She had emigrated from Ipswich in 2011 with her husband Lee and two daughters.
Mr Lovell, who is spending time in the UK with his children, said he had been in ‘dad mode’.ever since the attack.
EmmanuelsBlog understands the two teenagers charged with murder, who were 17 at the time, remain remanded in custody.
Reflecting on what happened, Mr Lovell recalled being woken by their dogs barking and finding intruders in their home.
‘I looked over at Emma and she was like ”the front door is open”,’ he said.
‘I just bolted to our bedroom door and opened it and saw people standing there.’
Mr Lovell said he tried to force one of the intruders out of the house and was injured.
He had not realised how badly hurt his wife was until he heard his daughter say “mummy’s bleeding”.
Mrs Lovell was resuscitated at the scene and had a pulse before her husband was taken to hospital.
He said: ‘I didn’t know how bad it was at the time. I knew she was bleeding but didn’t know where from.
‘I remember thinking at the time, ”I can’t die, I can’t leave the kids orphans”.’
He recalled the ‘shock’ at being told his wife had died.
‘[Emma] not surviving didn’t really cross my mind,’ he said.
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From that point on, Mr Lovell described how he ‘entered dad mode’ with his full focus on his daughters.
‘Grief, there’s no book to it,’ he said.
‘I have found it quite hard grieving. I like to think of myself as a typical guy who can’t do two things at once. It’s either looking after the house and being a parent or grieving.
‘I drive a small truck for work, it’s an hour’s drive and half the time I just put some music on, because I find music gets me to where I want to be and end up half the time just crying in my truck.
‘The kids, the house, I’ve been trying to be the best parent I can be. It’s all on me.
‘They were 13 and 15 at the time. Emma lost her dad at 13 and I know how much that affected her.’
