Hundreds pay tribute to victim of pit tragedy

HIS last words were a warning to colleagues about the disaster about to unfold nearly half a mile underground.

And family, friends and workmates gathered in their hundreds to pay tribute to the selfless courage of miner Gerry Gibson, who was killed when the roof partially collapsed at Kellingley Colliery a fortnight ago.

He was the third miner to die at the pit in the past three years.

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Shoppers stood in respectful silence as the funeral cortege arrived at Selby Abbey, and watched as his coffin – bearing a yellow miner’s helmet and folded fluorescent vest at one end and the Scottish Saltire at the other – was lifted upon broad shoulders and carried in, followed by Mr Gibson’s wide Brenda, their son Sean, 21, and other relatives.

It was placed at the altar above a floral tribute saying “DAD” and beneath the colliery banner and those of the National Union of Mineworkers.

The 800 mourners filled the abbey to its seams, with some standing shoulder to shoulder at the back and others left to watch by the doors.

This was and remains, in the words of a poem inserted into the order of service, “a band of brothers, all; who knew the bond of danger shared”.

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Mr Gibson, an experienced miner who loved his job, died just short of two milestones – his 25th wedding anniversary on October 18 and his 50th birthday on November 4.

His life was inextricably linked to the changing fortunes of the industry in which he worked.

He left school at 16 to follow his older brother Frankie down their local pit, Polkemmet, in their native Scotland, where they worked together until the Miners’ Strike of 1984.

Mr Gibson was said to have been at the “forefront” of the struggle against pit closures and was later forced to move his family three times to find work – first to Bilston Glen Colliery in Edinburgh, then to North Yorkshire to Stillingfleet, and latterly to Kellingley, where he worked until his death on September 27.

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After a Requiem Mass led by Father Michael McCarthy, a eulogy was given by his brother-in-law, Martin Kelly who said the father-of-two had “loved life, loved sharing jokes and always had a quick retort and an amusing anecdote”.

He often had pet names for his friends, who similarly called him “wee Gerry”, “Gerry the maestro”, and “Gerry the legend”. Mr Gibson enjoyed a lifelong love of music, could easily pick out a harmony and had just begun learning to play the guitar, Mr Kelly said.

And although he settled happily in Sherburn-in-Elmet, he remained “fiercely proud” of his Scottish roots and would regularly travel north to follow his beloved Celtic FC and celebrate Hogmanay.

Mr Kelly added: “He was honest, hard working, always putting others first.

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“That Tuesday, Lanarkshire and Yorkshire lost one of its favourite sons.”

Mr Kelly also read out a few words on behalf of Mrs Gibson, who said: “Gerry has been my best friend, my soul mate and the father of my two lovely boys.”

After the service on Saturday, John Weetman, vicar of Selby Abbey, said Mr Gibson’s death had touched many people.

He said: “He was obviously held in high respect by the people who knew him.

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His last words were reportedly to be to warn everybody about the impending disaster to make sure everybody else got out safely.

“The word mentioned many times (in the service) was solidarity; to remember him and stand alongside his family.”

Mr Gibson’s colleague, Phil Sheldon, of Horbury, Wakefield, suffered minor injuries in the incident and an investigation into its cause is continuing.

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