Sheriff says crofter died after being crushed by cattle

A man died after being crushed by cattle at his North Uist croft, a sheriff has determined, following a fatal accident inquiry at Lochmaddy earlier this month.

Hector Macleod, 58, was trying to return an escaped Charolais bull to its pen in a cattle shed at his croft on Berneray, where he lived with his partner, Jayne Jackson.

Sheriff Christopher Dickson said there were no ‘reasonable precautions’ Mr Macleod could have taken to avoid the accident, which happened on April 24 last year.

In his determination, the sheriff noted the crofter had not previously experienced any signs of aggression from either his 19 cows or his eight-yearold bull, which was born and raised at his croft. Berneray native Mr Macleod was in the main part of the cattle shed and returning the bull to its own enclosure when he was injured.

The bull, along with cows that got out of the shed, were safely returned to their pens and the bull, which was found to have blood on its head but was uninjured, was later put down.

Some of the cows were pregnant and others had calved. Ms Jackson presented her theory that the bull was seeking a female who was ‘on heat’ – as a calf was born almost exactly nine months to the day afterwards.

In her post mortem report, consultant pathologist Dr Natasha Inglis stated that Mr Macleod’s injuries were consistent with him having been attacked by the bull.

After completing his education, Mr Macleod had served in the Merchant Navy and had then joined the Royal Air Force, serving with distinction as part of the crew for Nimrod aircraft during one of the Gulf wars. During the course of his service with the RAF, he had also received medals for bravery.

In 2005, Mr Macleod was given the opportunity to return to Berneray to take over the family croft and had, since then, successfully run the croft, acquired other crofts and built up a herd of cattle.

The inquiry heard that Mr Macleod was a skilled crofter and his death had come as a huge shock to his mother, Ms Jackson and the rest of the community.

Sheriff Dickson said his thoughts were with Mr Macleod’s family.