A teenage boy has died in a crash on the same date his father passed away eight years ago.

Diego Dinelli, 16, was crossing Tucker Rd in Bentleigh, Melbourne’s southeast, after a gathering with friends when he was hit by a ute about 9pm on July 4.

He died at the scene.

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“How can this be? How does a healthy, vibrant boy … have it all stolen in a heartbeat?” his mother Teresa Svoronos wrote in a heartbreaking tribute.

Svoronos said Diego had just left a BBQ celebrating the end of term with friends from McKinnon Secondary, laughing and smiling — before “everything shattered in a split second”.

When she called him at 7pm, he was “having a great time”.

“What were you doing on Tucker Rd minutes away from the BBQ. Please someone give me some answers…” the devastated mother wrote.

She has returned to the crash site every day, sitting nearby and staring at the road, asking: “How was he not seen? Why did this happen?”

“I’m so broken without you my boy. It’s not fair! Who takes their child before their mother. I just can’t breathe,” she said.

The 16-year-old, who “barely ever saw a doctor”, had been looking forward to driving lessons and starting work experience.

Svoronos lovingly called Diego her “SonShine”, remembering how his “bright, cheeky smile lit up every corner of our lives”.

The grieving mother also revealed Diego lost his dad when he was just eight years old — also on July 4.

“Now, July 4th will forever be the day I lost both of you. How does a mother survive that?” she said.

“I want to believe. I always have. I’ve had deep faith. But now… my faith is being tested beyond anything I ever imagined.

“I am breaking. I am weakening. I have cried black tears. I cannot see the light. Because you were the light.”

Family and friends gathered around a “memorial tree” on Tucker Road to honour the beloved teenager in a candlelight vigil.

Flowers, candles, photos and cards were left at the site as a heartfelt reminder of Diego’s bright spirit and the deep loss felt by the community.

Friends have been sharing stories on Instagram using the tag #LLD (Long Live Diego).

A GoFundMe page has been set up by a friend to support the family through this “unimaginably tough time”.

“Forever 16, we all love you so much Diego. You were taken from us too early,” the page reads.

The 23-year-old driver from Ormond stopped the ute on Huntington Rd after the crash and was interviewed by police.

He has since been released pending further enquiries.