Super Puma tragedy ‘left a hole in people’s hearts that will never be filled’

The families of those killed in the Super Puma disaster today gathered for a memorial service in Aberdeen.

Speaking ahead of the service at Johnston Gardens, the Reverend Gordon Craig, of the UK Oil and Gas Chaplaincy, spoke of the pain relatives still endure, a decade on from the crash.

This disaster should not and will not ever be forgotten.

He said: “When people lose someone so suddenly and unexpectedly it is devastating and people cope with this in many different ways.

“It can leave a hole in people’s hearts that will never be filled. Families will be dealing with it every moment of their waking life.

“Time being a good healer isn’t an accurate phrase in my mind. I think time teaches people to cope with the hole that is always there.”

Johnston Gardens is home to a memorial dedicated to the victims of the tragedy, and today, representatives of Oil and Gas UK and both Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeenshire Council laid wreaths.

The Rev Craig told the gathering: “For those most directly involved, the 10th anniversary is in a very real way no different to any other anniversary.

“You are always acutely aware of your loss and many of you come here every year, or whenever you can, to remember and honour the memory of that person who is so dear to you.

“This disaster should not and will not ever be forgotten.”

The UK Oil and Gas Chaplaincy has remained close to families of the victims in the years following the disaster, said the Rev Craig.

He said: “My predecessor, the Rev Andrew Jolly, was heavily involved in the aftermath.

“From the outset, when the incident happened, the oil and gas chaplaincy had a co-ordinating role with everyone involved.

“This included supporting the families and the workforce and talking to the various companies involved.

“Total had given us their premises to help and support people at the time.

“There was a groundswell of sadness and support following the disaster and there was a huge turnout for the service at the St Nicholas Kirk.”

The Rev Craig said the legacy of the disaster is still felt to this day.

“This was probably the first major disaster to have happened in the north-east in the industry since Piper Alpha,” he said.

“It showed that emergency response protocols from the industry did work. However, there were very important lessons learned that day and are now implemented to this day.”

Chaplain at the time of the disaster, the Rev Jolly, received an MBE for his efforts in conducting a memorial service for the victims.

The Duke and Duchess of Rothesay, then-Prime Minister Gordon Brown and then-First Minister Alex Salmond were among 1,000 mourners at the service in the Kirk of St Nicholas.

Receiving his MBE in June 2010 from the Queen, the Rev Jolly said: “I am delighted and truly surprised to be made an MBE. This honour also serves as a reminder of those who perished on April 1.”

The Rev Jolly died in September 2010, and at the time, families of those who lost their lives paid tribute, praising the love, support and compassion he offered in the days, weeks and months after the disaster.