Nearly 1,000 gravestones found unsafe after cemetery death
evidence heard at the fatal accident inquiry into the death of 8 year old Ciaran Williamson in Craigton Cemetery in Glasgow last year
UP to 900 headstones were deemed unsafe by Glasgow City Council in the days after the death of an eight-year-old boy, a fatal accident inquiry heard.
Tragic Ciaran Williamson was playing with friends in Craigton Cemetery on May 26, last year, when the stone fell on him.
David McCall, the assistant bereavement services manager at the Council, told an inquiry into the death of the youngster that he raised concerns about no routine inspections of memorials.
He also claimed he was aware of a complaint about a hole in the wall of the cemetery reported in 2014 and confirmed it was repaired “shortly after” Ciaran’s death.
An inquiry into the incident is underway at Glasgow Sheriff Court in November to try and establish if there were any reasonable precautions that could have prevented the tragedy.
And, to establish if there were any defects in the system of work which caused or contributed to Ciaran’s death.
Mr McCall told the court he joined Glasgow City Council in 2013 and raised concerns that there was no regular checks of memorials in the city.
The witness said he was told “what we carry out at the present time was proportionate to the resources available.”
He said there was no permanent staff at Craigton at the time and they teamed up with the Scottish Prison Service to have inmates who are preparing to leave prison work at some of their cemeteries.
This was done at cemeteries in the east end of the Glasgow because it was in the lead up to the Commonwealth Games.
Mr McCall was asked by the procurator fiscal depute Gail Adair about the response by the council after Ciaran’s death.
He said once the area was made safe they “secured the site” and “attempted to make all memorials they felt were unsafe, safe”.
Mr McCall added that they laid flat the memorials that were deemed unsafe.
Miss Adair asked “Are you able to tell the court how many memorials were judged to unsafe?”
He replied: “Between 500 and 900.”
Asked if that was a realistic number he said that Craigton cemetery had been subject of a “significant amount of vandalism”.
Miss Adair told Mr McCall the inquiry has heard evidence that Ciaran and his friends went into the cemetery through a hole in the wall.
She asked “Do you know when or if that hole was reported to Glasgow City Council?”
The witness said that he has since learned there was a complaint in 2014 and there was two follow ups.
The fiscal depute confirmed with Mr McCall that it was passed between different departments and followed up but wasn’t repaired.
She put to him: “I think we heard in evidence the hole in the wall was repaired shortly after Ciaran’s death.”
Mr McCall answered: “Yes, that’s correct.”
The inquiry before sheriff Linda Ruxton continues.