Yesterday in Cumbria, it started in bright sunshine and clear blue skies. By the end of the day, twelve people had been shot dead, twenty-five had been wounded, some still critically ill in hospital and a community had been ripped to pieces in shock and at a loss to explain what had happened.
52-year old Derrick Bird, a self-employed taxi driver was known to many as a ‘friendly, quiet, likeable guy.’ However, yesterday, he went on a killing spree which has stunned an entire country. Witnesses say that Bird drove through West Cumbria, shooting people at random. Today, the names of the twelve fatalities were confirmed by the police. The first murders that Bird committed, in the Whitehaven area seem to have been linked, including his twin brother, a fellow taxi driver from the same cab firm and the family’s local solicitor. It is after this that he went on a random shooting spree, firing at whoever he wanted. Mothers, husbands, sons, daughters, students all targeted, from all ages, in three hours of absolute terror. Having begun in Whitehaven, Bird drove through the town with a gun hanging out of the car window, then headed south, going through village areas, Seascale and Gosforth.
At around 1.30pm, Mr. Bird drove to the woodland of the central lakes in his taxi, a Citroen Picasso and abandoned it in the Boot area of the town. It is at this area that he decided to turn the gun on himself, killing him and quite probably, taking the real reason why he committed this random shooting attack to his grave. Before this, police were desperately searching for him in vain, with helicopters brought in to help the search and residents told to stay indoors and close all windows for their own protection.
Soon afterwards, Deputy Chief Constable of Cumbria Police, Stuart Hyde told the media the following:
"I can confirm that we've found a body in a wooded area near Boot which we believe to be Mr Bird, together with a firearm.
"A formal identification will be made later."
"Our focus now is to try and work out what has caused this and where Mr Bird has been over the last 24 hours and in particular the last few hours.”
"I would plead to anyone who has seen him or has seen any of the incidents, please come forward, speak to us and help us piece together exactly was has happened in this very, very tragic set of circumstances.”
"We have a number of crime scenes across the county, which are being staffed by police officers, and I would ask people to show a little bit of restraint and respect in regard to those scenes as we try and piece together exactly what has gone on."
As the major incident occurred, all routine operations at the West Cumberland Hospital in Whitehaven were cancelled. ITV postponed its evening 9pm edition of Coronation Street, which involving a siege storyline in the Underworld factory, which would see the shooting of two of the show’s main characters. It is unclear yet whether this storyline will continue, or be shelved in the wake of these traumatic events.
Rumours are circulating about why Mr. Bird started this venomous attack on such a peaceful and close-knitted community. There has been talk of Mr. Bird suffering tax problems, rows with his family over the will of his elderly mother and an argument with a taxi driver on Tuesday night, which he may have taken severe offence to. The police are refusing to comment on this at the moment, and want to carry out a proper investigation, rather than jump to any hasty conclusions. It is believed that the shootings began at 10.35am, with a double murder at a taxi rank in Whitehaven. These are believed to be his twin brother, David Bird and close friend and fellow taxi driver Darren Rewcastle. Another witness spotted Mr. Bird at 6am, lurking outside the house of his local solicitor, Kevin Commons. Commons was later found dead, having being shot on his own driveway.
In a shooting spree that lasted the best part of 25 miles, other victims included a cyclist on a normal route, a woman delivering Betaware catalogues, a retired couple and Garry Purdham, a rugby league player, whose brother is the captain of Harlequins Rugby League in Super League. These were the random people, going about their normal business, but were caught in the line of crossfire.
At his first Prime Minister’s questions, David Cameron expressed his shock at the events which had taken place and said “the government will do everything it possibly can to help the local community and those affected.” There have been stiff calls for the laws on possession of firearms to be significantly tightened in the wake of this tragic event.
This is Britain’s worst mass killing since the massacre on a school in Dunblane. On that February morning in 1996, 14 students and their teacher were shot dead, and led to the banning of all handguns being in possession. Bird had two firearms in possession, and both were used in the killings. Today, it has been revealed by police that Mr. Bird has a conviction for theft in the 1990’s, and the weapons he held were valid. Mr. Bird applied for a shotgun license in 1995 and a rifle license in 2007. Of the twenty-five injured or wounded, three are still said to be in a very critical condition in hospital.
Derrek Bird was described by many as a quiet and likeable man, who had just become a grandfather. He lived in the village of Rowrah, looking after his elderly mother. Neighbours have been left stunned by this madness. James Campbell said: “He was a good neighbour, I can’t say much more about him.” “He was always pleasant and never caused any problems as a neighbour.”
For the community, it is another blow to their close-knitted society, as it is already mourning the deaths of two teenagers, killed in a school bus crash in the area last week. This incident has shocked Britain to its core, and many are asking, just why Derrek Bird decided to cause such mayhem and carnage in the peaceful area of Cumbria yesterday. Only he probably knows, and now because he took the coward’s way out, we probably will never find out the ultimate truth.
As a trainee journalist, this is no doubt the hardest blog I’ve ever had to publish so far, as this was death that could have easily been avoided, without the usual threats of terrorism and Mother Nature. This was a cynical attack on a community, which is known for very-low crime rates. Sadly, it seems like the innocent were in the right place, at the wrong time and have lost their lives undeservedly, as a result.
My deepest sympathies can only go out to the families of the dead and the injured, and to the community of Whitehaven and Cumbria as a whole, as it attempts to come to terms with Britain’s worst mass killing for fourteen years.
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