Minibus victims among hundreds mourned

PAPER oak leaves bearing the names of over 400 road crash victims cascaded silently on to a cathedral altar yesterday - among them those of the 13 who died in the M40 minibus tragedy.

The special service at Birmingham's St Philip's Cathedral was arranged prior to Thursday's horrific accident to draw attention to the annual toll of over 300,000 killed and injured on Britain's roads.

But the recent deaths of the 12 children from Hagley Roman Catholic High School and their teacher, made the service all the more poignant. Their names were included.

They died after their minibus smashed into the back of a stationary maintenance lorry on the hard shoulder of the motorway near Warwick, as they returned from a trip to London.

Bishop Michael Whinney read aloud the names of the children who died, and their teacher, Eleanor Fry, who had been driving the vehicle.

Police are still waiting to interview the two survivors of the crash, Polly Caldwell and Bethan O'Doherty, to discover whether they have any information which could help explain why the accident happened.

The two girls have now been told their schoolfriends and teacher have died. Expert professional help will be on offer for the survivors and bereaved, to help them come to terms with the tragedy.

But staff of the emergency services can also be devastated by witnessing terrible events and their aftermath, regardless of their professional training. Those in charge of the services have begun to realise that despite their macho image, even professionals like firemen may need post-trauma support.

On Thursday, when the fire crews who attended the M40 minibus crash returned to their Leamington base, the usual chat was replaced by a long and deep silence. It was the worst accident Ian Cowley, the 36- year-old divisional officer with Warwickshire Fire Brigade, had seen in 20 years of service.

'It was a combination of them being only youngsters - I have a son who is 15 - and the large number of dead,' he said.

'When they are so young, it makes it more difficult to cope with. It's almost that adults are expected to look after themselves. Everyone wants to do their best for children.

'You learn how to cope with it. We are all used to seeing them in ones and twos. But you don't get used to it, you just learn how to deal with it.'

Other firefighters who were called out agreed on the acute impact of incidents involving children. 'I could imagine it was one of my lads,' said Roger Ward, 41, a leading firefighter with Green Watch, who has two teenage sons. 'It is the waste of a young life that gets me.'

Incidents like the minibus crash have led the Warwick brigade, amongst others, to introduce a formal debriefing programme to help firefighters deal with the stress.

The brigade covers an area with more motorways than any other and attends more than 300 serious road accidents a year. There are an average of 10 fatal fires per year with six resulting in multiple deaths.

Most of the firefighters are still wary of publicly admitting problems resulting from seeing incidents. The preferred method is to keep busy at the scene, and then be shielded within the closed world of individual watch, a relatively small unit where everything is discussed internally.

Mr Cowley said he deliberately kept the 16 firefighters busy on Thursday. 'I gave everybody something to do rather than allow people to stand around and look at the carnage. These sort of things can come back and haunt people for years.'

The danger of some form of trauma-related stress is greatest when an incident can penetrate the vulnerable part of the mind, according to Tony Hobbs, a consultant psychologist who has been advising Warwickshire Fire Brigade.

'There are always certain situations which act like an Achilles' heel,' he said. 'These are emotionally tough and resilient people. It is very difficult at times for them to acknowledge what they are feeling.'

Mr Hobbs, who works for the Centre for Crisis Psychology, set up in the wake of the Bradford stadium fire, said research had shown that more support is needed after a major incident.

'In the past there was a lot of absence and sick leave and there were quite a few departures from the service,' he said. 'It has always been a problem, but it has not always been recognised.

Parents and teachers of the dead children have launched an appeal to raise funds for a music centre at the Hagley RC High School as a permanent memorial. Donations can be sent to: The Appeal Fund, Hagley Roman Catholic High School, Brake Lane, Hagley, Worcs, DY8 2XL.

(Photograph omitted)