Bin lorry driver: If it was all my fault, I’d jump off bridge
‘I can’t get over the devastation’
THE driver of a Glasgow bin lorry that killed six people when it careered out of control days before Christmas in 2014 has apologised for ‘the part he played’ in the tragedy.
Harry Clarke maintains that he did not lie to bosses about his history of medical blackouts, which an official inquiry blamed for the deaths.
As the fifth anniversary of the December 22 crash approaches, Mr Clarke told The Mail on Sunday:
‘I’m sorry for the part I played in 2014.
‘It was an accident. If I thought for a minute it was all my fault I’d jump off a bridge. I am devastated at what happened.
‘There’s all these poor people that are not here and those who were injured. It has been made out that I don’t care about what happened. There’s not a day goes by I don’t think about it.’
He added: ‘When I found out how bad it was, I just couldn’t take in what had happened. My licence was clean – there wasn’t even a speeding fine. I just can’t get over the devastation.’
After the tragedy, the Crown Office took the controversial decision not to prosecute Mr Clarke, saying there was no evidence he had committed a crime.
Mr Clarke said: ‘I was glad because I knew it was an accident and I had never been in court in my life, so that terrified me.
‘Six people died. It’s awful for all of the families. The girl and her grandparents – that really got me. How do they move on from that?’
However, one of those seriously injured in the crash rejected his apology. Marie Weatherall, who suffered a broken ankle, leg, arm and shoulder, said: ‘It makes no difference now. Life is what it is. I wish the accident hadn’t happened and five years down the line, it makes no difference to me what Harry Clarke says or does.’
A fatal accident inquiry blamed the 62-year-old for the tragedy, concludcondition ing that he had previously blacked out at the wheel of a bus and then lied about it ‘repeatedly’.
The FAI heard a shocking litany of health problems, including a fainting episode in 1989 while driving lorries for a brewery, and being advised to stop driving oil tankers in July 2003, after complaining of dizziness.
Evidence was heard that Mr Clarke had passed out as he sat behind the wheel of a stationary bus in April 2010 while working for First Bus, but he gave two different versions of the episode – one to his GP and another to one of the bus firm’s doctors.
He failed to disclose the incident to Glasgow City Council or the DVLA when he applied for driving jobs with the local authority.
Experts have since diagnosed neurocardiogenic syncope, a fainting that can occur without warning.
Erin McQuade, 18, and her grandparents Jack Sweeney, 68, and Lorraine Sweeney, 69, from Dumbarton; Stephenie Tait, 29, and Jacqueline Morton, 51, both from Glasgow; and Gillian Ewing, 52, from Edinburgh, died. A further 15 people were injured when the Glasgow City Council truck veered out of control.
At the FAI, Mr Clarke infuriated his victims’ families by refusing to answer questions put to him, fearing he could face a private prosecution. Efforts to bring such a prosecution were later rejected by the High Court in Edinburgh.
Mr Clarke was forced to surrender his licence on medical grounds but at Glasgow Sheriff Court in 2017, he admitted a charge of reckless driving after being spotted driving his car.
He has since vowed never to drive again, after finally accepting he could black out without warning.