December 10, 1998. Copyright, 1998, Graphic News. All rights reserved

MEMORIAL TO THE  VICTIMS OF LOCKERBIE
By Midge Todhunter

LONDON, December 10, Graphic News:  IT HAPPENED at Lockerbie  and here they will stay.

As if by some outward display of fortitude, the townspeople of Lockerbie have embraced their fellow victims who fell from the sky that night. Taken them as their own and buried them alongside their loved ones in the Dryfesdale cemetery just outside the town.

Theres a profound aura of peace about this place  an eerie stillness which suggests rest here is eternal. A long swathe of green, lined either side by a high stone wall, as is traditional in these parts. Behind each wall, tall, elegant trees sigh wistfully in the light wind. The only other movement  a red squirrel scampering inquisitively along the top of the wall.

The whole picture creates a narrow vista looking out across the Dumfriesshire farmland where sheep graze contentedly, oblivious to the significance of the place. And standing clearly in the distance, that famous hill at Tundergarth looks back.

The Wall of Remembrance is a reminder of the scale of the disaster. So many people  so many lives. Plaques either side, placed there by loved ones, are not allowed to be tainted by the harsh foothills weather. Each grave is regularly attended, with fresh flowers and photos adorning the scene.

It may be 10 years on, but its as if it all happened yesterday. In a hundred years time, this scene may well have changed  but theres little doubt the memories will take a lot longer to fade.
/ENDS