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What region of earth is not
full of our sorrow?
The eyes of the nation homed in on Egremont as the funeral
of Bill Barker became the leading story in the BBC's
6o'clock News on Friday 27th November. They were united with
us not only in grief but in deep respect for a man who had
died putting the safety of others before his own as he went
to the aid of a motorist in danger on a bridge that was on
the point of collapsing, and for the amazing dignity of his
family.
His wife, Hazel, said,
"We as a family have been overwhelmed by the support,
messages and condolence and tributes we have received.
It is so comforting to know that Bill touched the lives of
so many and you only have to look around you today to see
how much of an impact Bill's death has had."
On the very day of the funeral Bill's son, Simon, had
written to us asking us to draw attention to the donation
page he has just dedicated to the Great North Air Ambulance
in memory of his father. If you would like to give to a life
saving charity dear to the heart of Bill while he lived and
to Simon, go to
www.justgiving.com
and search 'Simon-Barker'. As we write only a few hours
later, £395 had already been donated.
The Rector of Egremont, Rev'd Richard Lee, spoke from his
heart when he said,
"Family, friends, colleagues, neighbours and those who knew
him from afar have come together united in grief for the
loss of someone special." He described the warmth of the
family he had visited while Bill was still alive, with
everyone talking at once, including the parrot.
Detective Constable Rooney spoke of "the warm, loving
welcome that everyone gave me," in a house with a menagerie
of animals.
Chief Constable Craig Mackey said,
"Today is a very sad day.
"Cumbria Police has lost a dedicated and committed officer
who spent 25 years serving the community of Cumbria.
"He was clearly more than just a police officer, and the
thoughts of everyone in the constabulary are with Hazel, his
four children and family and friends."
A the hearse left the church,
bearing the coffin draped in the Union Jack with Bill's
helmet and his police number arranged in flowers, the
hundreds of people watching broke into spontaneous applause
expressing their admiration and gratitude.
The Prime Minister had spoken of Bill as "a very heroic,
very brave man" doing his duty and setting the safety of the
people he served above his own.
During the previous week we had received messages from as
far apart as Ayrshire in Scotland and Hove on the Sussex
coast.
Andrew Burn had written in an email,
"Amid deep concerns for all the suffering and difficulties
in Cumbria, I was especially upset to learn of the death of
PC Barker from Egremont in the terrible rainstorms of last
week. He was evidently a man motivated by determination to
prioritise the wellbeing of others.
How would it be if, in remembrance of and respect for PC
Barker's selfless desire to put others' wellbeing first, the
new Workington bridge, from where he died so tragically,
could be called 'The Barker Bridge'?
I feel the new bridge, if named in PC Barker's honour, could
better serve as a geographic reminder for our present
people, and to the generations to come, of the events of
this November..
May God bless and comfort PC Barker's family and the
Cumbrian people."
Margaret Ficken, writes:
"The radio has just given out the news about PC Bill Barker,
and I feel so sad. It would have been his birthday tomorrow,
his 45th, and he has four children. This is an absolute
tragedy."
We have received similar messages from many others,
including Norman Waddington, in Featherstone, and Barry
Coidan, from Walthamstowe.
We feel sure there will be others who wish to share
their thoughts and memories of Bill. If you are one of
those, please send those thoughts to:
egremont2@aol.com
or Egremont Today, Waverley, Grendykes, Egremont, CA22 2JS
Donald Eaton has spoken to us with great respect for Bill.
"He has sometimes warned me, but he was doing his duty and
he was always fair," he said.
Alan Clements thought poignantly of Bill's family on the day
that would have been his 45th birthday. Alan had been
standing on the South Street bridge at 4am on the morning of
the storm with the crew of the fire brigade, when the
thought struck him, "Is this safe?" The bridge has since
been closed, not because any structural damage has been
detected but as a precaution. Alan's experiences is a
further reminder of the dangers faced routinely by members
of the emergency services at times of crisis.
All of these responses are written in a desire to share a
sorrow, but also in respect, admiration, even relief that we
have found an answer to those cynics who believe that
humanity is driven only by narrow self interest
"What can we do to help?" is a question many people are
asking. It is possible to make donations at the nearest
branch of Cumberland Building Society, or on line through
through the website of the Cumbria Community Foundation:
www.cumbriafoundation.org,
for the Cumbria Flood Recovery Fund,
or the CFM Radio website
for a fund to help children in nearby towns like Cockermouth
who are facing a bleak Christmas after the destruction of
their homes.
www.cfmradio.com/Article.asp?id=1596740&spid=35726,
Egremont Today will be sending its own contribution.
Egremont's Rector, Rev'd Richard Lee, has sent us the
following moving and eloquent reflection on those terrible
floods:
‘Bridges’
Like
so many good things around us – we take them – Bridges - for
granted and forget their importance, value and worth,
despite that in our language, literature and history their
centrality has been revisited so many times.
At school we sang ‘London Bridge is falling down...’ over
and over again. In Advertising for a popular snack – we
‘bridged that gap with C......’s Snack’. In matters of faith
the Papacy inherited and proclaims the imperial priestly
office of Pontifex Maximus (The Greatest Bridge Builder that
Christ is between God and Humanity). ‘Bridge over Troubled
Waters’ (Simon and Garfunkel) in its cadences and words
still moves us to thought and action for peace and
reconciliation. The War Time histories of the horrors of the
‘Bridge over the River Kwai’ and ‘The Bridge Too Far at
Arnhem’ , capture our thoughts about the importance our
bridges hold in terms of what nations will do to control and
cross them. Yet conversely the beauty of the ‘Bridge of
Sighs’ in Venice can move many to tears as did the
destruction of the exquisite ancient bridge joining one side
of the city of Mostar (Former Yugoslavia) to the other,
epitomised the sheer cruelty and moral destructiveness of
civil conflict and war.
To hear the roll call of destruction, and then see the
collapse of these symbolic keystones in our lives can have a
very unsettling and disproportionate affect upon us. In the
same way that people were drawn to observe the fascinating
power of our swollen rivers, so they were appalled to
witness the utter destructiveness of the swollen
floodwaters.
Cockermouth and a trail of other major Cumbrian centres lie
emotionally and physically flattened. Cumbrians know the
harshness of their weather and the dangers of our beautiful
yet rugged county and share a rugged disregard for hardship
and dismiss despair. Yet this time it reached out and
affected so many and then took the life of a good man, doing
his duty and safeguarding the lives of others. No wonder we
are taken aback and caused to ponder the values we place
upon our lives, our homes and the many things we take for
granted. For one family there will be a key stone missing
from their lives forever and no amount of reconstruction and
compensation can bridge that gap. What may make it bearable
are your prayers, your practical support, offered now to
communities and individuals alike that says to everyone that
in your fears and your pain you are not alone, your grief is
shared and your anxieties are real will be listened to. So
if we can walk with you and offer our strengths in your
weakness then we can come through this difficult time
strengthened in our fellowship and our communities can be
renewed and strengthened for the future.
A prayer for those who put themselves
at risk for the welfare of others, bridging gaps and
rekindling hope.
Almighty God, by whose grace we are called to positions of
responsibility and trust bless, we pray you, all members of
our emergency services. Inspire them to courage and wisdom,
courtesy and faithfulness: by saving, supporting and
comforting others they may also serve you and so become
strengthened and more worthy of their calling; through Jesus
Christ our Lord.
Amen"
Appalling Suffering
There has been appalling suffering in Cockermouth
where almost all the shops on the Main Street have ben
devastated, and many of our friends have ben left homeless so
close to Chistmas. Egremont was extremely fortunate
to escape without any widespread damage. You can see from our
photographs just how close the river came to the top of the
bridge arches at 7am on Friday morning and the extent of the
raging torrent. See also dredging work under way in June,
removing rubble from under the arches. This almost
certainly saved Bridge End from inundation.
"What can we do to help?" is
a question many people are asking. It is possible to
make donations at the nearest branch of Cumberland Building
Society, or on line through through the website of the
Cumbria Community Foundation:
www.cumbriafoundation.org
the CFM Radio website
http://www.cfmradio.com/Article.asp?id=1596740&spid=35726,
Egremont Today will be sending its own contribution.
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| This nifty little grubber cleared
debris from under the bridge last June. |
The river at 7.30am on Friday 20th
November |
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