THE grieving family of a talented student who died after a rollercoaster accident told yesterday how they had lost "our bright star".

Gemma Louise Savage died in hospital from the injuries she suffered on the Treetop Twister ride at Lightwater Valley, near Ripon, North Yorkshire.

The 20-year-old had just completed her second year reading bio-medical sciences at Durham University's Stockton campus.

Yesterday, as speculation mounted that the theme park could face criminal charges over Gemma's death, her father, Stuart Savage, from Rotherham, said: "Our world has been turned upside down and all our hopes and dreams shattered.

"Had her life not been cut so tragically short, her contribution to medicine, we are sure, would have been incalculable.

"The tragedy has been made all the worse by the fact that she had just finished her second year at Durham.

"She was celebrating by having a fun day out with friends at Lightwater Valley before going on to collect her exam results. We have been deprived of our bright star, our loss is irreplaceable."

North Yorkshire Police and the Health and Safety Executive have launched a joint investigation into the accident.