Glasgow’s firefighters ensure no victims are forgotten
and five members of the Salvage Corps.
The pain for the families did not end there. The widows were told they had to leave their homes within four weeks as they lived in fire service flats that would be needed for new firemen. They were to be strewn around the city in council housing just at the time when they needed the strength and support of each other.
The public generously gave money but it was diverted to the national benevolent fund for firemen and not to the families themselves, who had to make do with meagre pensions. Remember, this was before the national firemen’s strike, and wages were quite pitiful, so pensions were not any better. Inexplicably, the Lord Provost of Glasgow at the time said there was no need for fundraising as Glasgow looked after its own, whatever that meant.
However, while the authorities may have let the families down, the fire service at a local level tried not to. The medals and uniforms suggests quite a military organisation, but that is more a reflection of the discipline that is required when people are facing such dangerous situations. In reality it is more of a family. Welfare officers ensure the families and widows of firefighters are not forgotten, inviting them to gatherings, summer trips, and Christmas lunches. Once a member of the family, you remain a member, even though like all families there may be the occasional fall-out and disagreement.
And nor are the dead forgotten. The Necropolis is full of grand statues and memorials to the dead of Victorian Britain, but, in truth, the dead
‘‘ At a time when your brain is screaming you should run as fast as you can from flames, Glasgow firemen decided to do the opposite
themselves are rarely remembered. Not so with the Fire Service, which is why every year on the anniversary of the Kilbirnie fire and on the anniversary of the Cheapside blaze, a simple service is held at the memorial with wreaths laid from the service, the council, the union, charities and individuals.
The families of the men are invited, and former colleagues know the date by heart and turn up every year. No one from the family that owned Sher Brothers makes an appearance, but as a retired fireman tells me, they would not be welcome. Emotions are still heavily felt even after 44 years.
Deputy Assistant Chief Officer John Miller, who spoke at the memorial, reflected that each day, men and women in the service put their own lives at risk to save the lives of others. “But the past shapes who we are,” he says. The lessons learned after Cheapside Street and Kilbirnie Street led to safer ways buildings were constructed, and more robust procedures for tackling fires. Since Kilbirnie Street there has never been any multiple deaths amongst fire crews in Scotland.
After brief but moving speeches, a guard of honour, and a lone piper, the former firemen join the serving members and go for tea and sandwiches at a local fire station.
But this time next year they will be back, and the year after that. It really was a privilege to join them on that quiet graveyard corner last week. AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL GLASGOW WEST: Benefit event at The Stand, Glasgow, August 31. ALZHEIMER SCOTLAND: The Adam McCluskey Pro-Am Golf Tournament, Cawder Golf Club, Bishopbriggs, September 2. CHRISTIAN AID: In Memory Walk, Muckhart Village, Dollar, September 3. ACTION FOR CHILDREN SCOTLAND: Reception in honour of Flora Martin, 30 St Vincent Place, Glasgow, September 5. THE R3 (ASSOCIATION OF BUSINESS RECOVERY PROFESSIONALS) SCOTLAND COMMITTEE: Annual dinner, Grand Central Hotel, Glasgow, September 8. SENSE SCOTLAND: Zip Slide across the River Clyde, Glasgow, September 10. SUPPORT IN MIND: Benefit in Aid of Support In Mind, The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, Glasgow, September 12. ROYAL BLIND: Royal Blind Pub Quiz, The Merlin, 168-172 Morningside Road, Edinburgh, September 14. THE LAUREN CURRIE TWILIGHT FOUNDATION: Black & Red Vasculitis Awareness Ball, Radisson Blu Hotel, 301 Argyle Street, Glasgow, September 16. THE CAPTAIN DAVID SEATH MEMORIAL FUND: Afternoon Tea for David, George Hotel, 19-21 George Street, Edinburgh, September 18. ACTION FOR CHILDREN IN SCOTLAND: Never Mind The Business Glasgow 2016 music quiz, the Hilton Hotel, 1 William Street, Glasgow, September 22. MAGGIE’S CENTRES: Maggie’s Culture Crawl Edinburgh, Edinburgh City Centre, Edinburgh, September 23.