THIS IS A TOWN KILLER
BRITISH Steel workers in Scunthorpe yesterday told of their shock after hearing about the plan to close down their blast furnaces, calling it a “town killer”.
Labourer Lee Carter, who has worked at the plant for six years, said: “It’s a bit worrying. Where’s it going to be in 10 years? It’s going to turn Scunthorpe into a ghost town.”
Blast furnace workers Ethan Terentiak and Charlie Murray said it all came as a “bit of a shock” and hoped the Government will “step in to help”.
Contractor Craig Welford, 49, shook his head as he left work and said: “I found out this morning, it’s not good.”
Thomas Hughes, 60, a welder contractor, said people at the plant “are all upset and very worried”. The town’s history is dominated by the four blast furnaces known as the Four Queens of Ironmaking, named after the English queens – Mary, Bess, Anne and Victoria.
In 1975 tragedy struck when 11 men were killed in an explosion at the Queen Victoria furnace in the then Appleby-Frodingham ironworks. A sculpture which stands in the town centre’s Foundry Square shows a man and a woman leaving after a long shift. It is made from Corten steel, to honour the generations of workers.
Unions said the impact on the town would be “enormous”.
Martin Foster, from Unite, told The Mirror: “This could mean 2,000 job losses, that’s 2,000 families devastated, a local community devastated. The impact is just enormous.
“Somebody said it could be a town killer. For the guys who work here this is shocking news and a case of deja vu.
“We always hope this is going to be the last time but for these guys it feels like a death by a thousand cuts. All we are seeing is jobs being slashed and people thrown over the side.”
Paul McBean, chairman of British Steel Community Union, described it as a “massive let-down” for the workers.
He said: “We were told officially this morning. Obviously there was shock and the workforce are upset. We are happy they have consulted with us and we are happy with the investment but the job losses we are not happy with.”