A firefighter paid a touching tribute to his grandfather at a service to recollect seven males who died battling a warehouse blaze 50 years in the past.
William Hooper was one of many firefighters who died within the Kilbirnie Avenue fireplace in Glasgow on August 25 1972.
5 many years after the occasion, his grandson Derek Roden, a crew commander with the Scottish Hearth and Rescue Service (SFRS), laid a fireman’s helmet on the altar throughout a memorial service at Glasgow Cathedral.
The helmet was a reproduction of the sort his grandfather would have worn whereas tacking the blaze, which additionally killed Andrew Quinn, Alistair Crofts, Iain Bermingham, Allan Finlay, Duncan McMillan and James Rook.
As emergency crews tried to evacuate the burning constructing, firefighter Rook had turn into trapped, with divisional officer Quinn main a group of volunteers to attempt to rescue him.
However, because the search occasion entered the constructing, the hearth ignited the hardwood ceilings on the primary ground, inflicting a large ‘flashover’, resulting in their deaths.
Mr Roden stated he had been “proud to tackle the honour” and characterize his household at Thursday’s service.
Mr Roden, who is predicated at Glasgow’s Castlemilk Group Hearth Station, spoke about his grandfather, saying: “I’ve seen images of my grandfather and I do know he was a eager piano participant.
“They used to have events and have everybody spherical to their home. He was very sociable.
“He was 43 when he handed, and I have a look at images of him, I’ve simply turned 40 this 12 months and right here I'm virtually at his age – the identical as him.”
SFRS interim chief officer Ross Haggart paid tribute to the “bravery and selfless dedication” of those that died.
He informed the service: “Fifty years in the past on Friday August 25 1972, Glasgow suffered a horrible tragedy when seven courageous firefighters misplaced their lives on the warehouse fireplace on Kilbirnie Avenue on town’s south facet.
“The grief shook the entire of Scotland because the nation mourned seven courageous males.
“Half a century later, the unhappiness surrounding the tragic occasion continues to be profoundly felt by everybody who's related to the Scottish Hearth and Rescue Service.
“The reminiscences of these courageous males proceed to march on.”
Mr Haggart stated that the spirit of the seven firefighters “lives on in each particular person around the globe who wears a hearth service crest with delight and dangers their very own life daily to avoid wasting the lives of others”.
He continued: “That bravery and selfless dedication drives each firefighter. It’s what motivates them to hitch the service and its what sees them commit themselves with out query to conditions many can by no means dare to even think about.
“The tragic incident on August 25 1972 was simply such a state of affairs, tragically ensuing within the untimely lack of seven courageous males.
“The final word sacrifice made within the Kilbirnie Avenue fireplace will all the time be remembered. Their actions won't ever be forgotten.”
Two classic fireplace engines from 1972 had been stationed outdoors Glasgow Cathedral in the course of the service, as a part of the tributes to the boys who died.
Scottish Well being Secretary Humza Yousaf was amongst those that attended the service, saying afterwards: “I'm grateful to have the ability to pay tribute on the fiftieth anniversary of the Kilbirnie Avenue fireplace to the courageous officers who misplaced their lives that day and to acknowledge the devastating affect it has had on their households.
“It's a second to recollect their sacrifice, and likewise to recognise the dedication to obligation proven by the 1000's of firefighters throughout Scotland who proceed to threat their lives to guard us.”