Remembering the Cheapside Street fire 65 years on
A remembrance service was held in Glasgow to honour the nineteen firefighters who died 65 years ago while fighting a fire on Cheapside Street.
On the evening of March 28, 1960, a fire broke out in Glasgow in a whisky bond warehouse, resulting in the deaths of fourteen members of the Glasgow Fire Service and five from the Glasgow Salvage Corps. They lost their lives while working to protect the public, marking the largest peacetime loss of life for fire and rescue services in Britain.
At its height, 30 pumps, 5 turntable ladders and various specialist resources fought the blaze with a total of 450 firefighters from Greater Glasgow engaged in an intense seven-day operation to combat and extinguish the fire.
The building's 60-foot-tall walls collapsed due to an explosion caused by the blaze that tore through the warehouse.
The men were remembered at a memorial service at Glasgow Necropolis led by SFRS chaplains Reverend Gordon Armstrong and Father Jim Thomson.
SFRS Chief Officer Stuart Stevens was joined by the Chair of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Board Dr Kirsty Darwent, Local Senior Officer for Glasgow, Area Commander Andrew Kenna, HMFSI Assistant Inspector John Joyce and Bailie Jim Kavanagh in a wreath-laying ceremony honoring those who perished in the tragedy.
Chief Officer Stevens said: "I am honoured to be here today to commemorate the nineteen courageous men who tragically lost their lives while battling the Cheapside Street fire in 1960.
"For many of us gathered here, 65 years later, we pay our respects not only to them as dedicated firefighters and colleagues, but also as fathers, husbands, brothers, and sons.
"This courage and unwavering dedication is ingrained in every firefighter. It’s what compels them to join the Service and what motivates them to commit themselves, without hesitation, into situations that others cannot imagine.
"The sacrifice made by the 19 men fighting the Cheapside Street fire will always be remembered. Their memory lives on, as a proud part of our history, and our thoughts will always be with them and their families.
The nineteen Glasgow Fire Service and Glasgow Salvage Corps members who died at Cheapside Street were fire service Sub Officers James Calder and John McPherson and Firemen Christopher Boyle, William Crocket, Archibald Darroch, Alexander Grassie, George McIntyre, Daniel Davidson, Edward McMillan, Alfred Dickinson, William Watson, John Allan, Gordon Chapman, and Ian McMillan.
From Glasgow Salvage corps there was Superintendent Edward Murray, Leading Salvageman James McLellan, Salvagemen Gordon McMillan, William Oliver and James Mungall.