Wick nurse disgusted at destruction of her late father’s memorial bench

A Wick nurse was shocked to find a memorial bench dedicated to her late father lying in pieces after an apparent attack by vandals.

Hayley Levack is an auxiliary nurse at the Bignold wing of Caithness General Hospital and her family had the bench erected at a viewpoint above the Trinkie swimming pool near Wick after her father, Ian Harper, died in 2009.

“It’s horrific,” said Hayley, who claims the bench was vandalised some years ago as well.

“I was disgusted that someone could do that. I was very, very upset by it.”

Ian Harper passed away on April 26, 2009, at the age of 66 from heart and breathing problems. “He was brought up around the Trinkie and that’s where we scattered his ashes,” said Hayley. She added that the family put the memorial bench up at a spot on the south side of Wick Bay and overlooking the outdoor swimming pool, a few months after he died.

“His wish was that he wanted his ashes scattered over the Trinkie.”

Hayley said that her aunt, Kate Durrand, was the first person to inform her that the bench had been vandalised. One of the back panels was dislodged and both armrests were broken off. Though it was discovered on Sunday (April 21), Hayley thinks it was probably damaged the day before. The nature of the damage appears that it was unlikely to have been a car that had hit it and, instead, seems to be a deliberate act of vandalism.

“I went around on the Monday and took pictures. When my Auntie Kate told me, I thought it could have been an accident or the wind as it’s been up for a long, long time. You know by just looking at it that it’s been vandalised. The arms have been totally pulled off and the back’s been pulled off. We had it vandalised before and got it fixed but it wasn’t as bad as it is now.”

There are other benches along the south side of Wick Bay that have suffered similar damage and Hayley thinks it is more than likely to be random vandalism rather than a targeted attack.

Highland councillors representing the area were quick to share their thoughts on the matter and were united in condemning the wanton act of destruction.

Wick and east Caithness councillor Raymond Bremner said: “I can't imagine why anyone would get kicks out of this kind of mindless damage and the heartache this causes folk in respect of someone's memory.

“It's so disrespectful. The Trinkie area is an area that provides a lot of pleasure for local families, friends and visitors. I really would plead with folks to report this kind of damage to the police and provide them with any knowledge they have of who might be responsible.”

Fellow Highland councillor for the ward and Wick provost, Jan McEwan, added: “Between the vandalised Caithness at War signage, damage to shop properties and now this memorial bench at the Trinkie, do these vandals not realise that this is their town they are damaging and that one day their wanton childish vandalism will catch up with them?

“Instead of causing damage to property why don’t they join the huge amount of volunteers who are trying to improve the town for the future?”

Steve Macdonald, community payback officer with the Criminal Justice Service based in Wick, said that his team will assess the damage with a view to fixing it. When Hayley shared a photograph on social media showing the vandalised bench, many other local people said they would help.

However, Hayley thinks she may just replace the bench with a plastic one that will be more robust.

Anyone with information on the vandalised bench at the Trinkie should contact Police Scotland on 101.