TRIBUTES have been paid to a 21-year-old woman who was the victim of a fatal traffic incident on the A48 earlier this month.

Rhiannon Smith, from Llandevaud near Newport, was involved in the collision on 16th March between a black Range Rover Evoque and a grey Toyota Yaris at approximately 7.29am.

She was taken to hospital after the collision but Gwent Police said Rhiannon has since died of her injuries.

“Rhiannon, eldest daughter of Julian and Gill Smith and sister to Sophie, was a wonderful young lady,” said a statement from her family.

“She was such an integral part of the Smith household and will be sorely missed, never forgotten and impossible to replace.”

Having completed her degree in sociology at Cardiff University, Rhiannon was in the process of completing her PGCE in Gloucester to fulfil her ambition to become a junior school teacher.

“Her enthusiasm for teaching was difficult to match,” her family added. “She had recently said that she was having the happiest time of her life and thanked her family for enabling her to achieve these wonderful goals.

“Rhiannon had been applying for teaching jobs in London where she hoped to move next year to begin a new life with her boyfriend. Rhiannon was the life and soul of a party, and left a mark on everyone she met.

“She was meticulous and great at organising. She enjoyed cooking, especially creating fancy cakes. In a household of sports players, she was a real girl’s girl. She liked nothing better than sitting in a fragrant bath, listening to ‘The 1975’ and Ed Sheeran, then painting her nails before watching a good girly film. However, she did enjoy walking and dragged her family up several notable mountains.”

Anyone with information relating to the collision is asked to call Gwent Police on 101 quoting log number 51 16/3/17.