A 77-year-old man who fell to his death from scaffolding in an Aberdeenshire town has been described as an “absolutely terrific guy” with a “fantastic sense of humour”.
George Forbes was pronounced dead at the scene after he fell from a scaffold on Merchant Street in Peterhead on Wednesday at around 3pm.
He and another 77-year-old man, named locally as Alistair Buchan, were carrying out maintenance works on St Peter’s Church before the scaffold collapsed from beneath them.
Mr Buchan was rushed to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary with serious injuries.
Mr Forbes’ family were too upset to talk today.
As news of the keen bowler’s death spread, tributes from friends and the wider community flooded in.
‘He had a fantastic sense of humour’
Secretary of Buchan Bowling Association, Raymond Brown, 72, paid tribute to Mr Forbes, a friend and member of the club for over 40 years.
He said: “George was an absolutely terrific guy, he had a fantastic sense of humour.
“He was always ready to tell a story. He was a really nice chap to be in company with.
“We actually had a meeting down at the indoor bowling club last night and that was the first I heard of the news.
“He was due to play bowls outside in a competition on Wednesday night and obviously we cancelled that.
“It was quite a shock when we heard he had been in a scaffolding tragedy, I think he is involved with St Peter’s Church so that’s the only reason I think he would be on the scaffold there.
“We will just miss George, he was a cheery chap and a happy-go-lucky guy who was easy to get along with.
“I don’t think he ever fell out with anybody. He will certainly be missed here, in Cruden Bay and in Peterhead because he’s been a bowler a long time.”
In Peterhead, bowlers described the pensioner’s “quiet” but “lovely” demeanour.
They also spoke of the 77-year-old’s lifelong links to the local area and how he had introduced many of them to the game.
Church pays tribute
Rev Richard O’Sullivan, rector of St Peter’s Church, also paid his respects to the qualified bowls umpire and former worker at Balfour Beatty Construction.
He said: “The tragic accident at St Peter’s Church in Peterhead involved two members of the church community, and we hold them, their families and their friends in our prayers. This is a desperately sad time for all involved, for the congregation, and for the town itself.
“The church asks that the families are given privacy at this difficult time.”
‘I heard a loud crashing’
Residents on Merchant Street described the moments which led to the pensioner’s sad death.
Rolndas Cerneckas, 42, who lives directly across from the church where the men were carrying out the works, said: “I was out back drinking a coffee when I heard a loud crashing.
“I checked through my front window and saw the scaffold was on its side.
“Initially I just thought they were dismantling it and it wasn’t until I heard the sirens and the road being closed that I knew something was going on.”
“It is very sad that this has happened.”
Today, officers continued their inquiries as they knocked on doors in the now, very quiet street.
Aside from the remnants of the scaffold and a police cordon still in place, there would be no reason to believe the terrible events that had unfolded less then 24 hours prior.
Children shielded from tragedy
Mr Cerneckas said that during the incident, his kids were moved into a local hotel to prevent any sightings of the collapse.
He said: “My kids had to wait in the hotel up the road due to the road being closed, I was calling them for a couple of hours to make sure they were okay.”
Children next door to the church in Bright Beginnings Nursery were also shielded from the tragedy.
Sammiie Jamieson, 25, who lives nearby said: “They were all kept inside for quite a while so they didn’t have to see.
“When I’d walk my daughter to school the two men would always say hello and wave to her.
“It’s so sad to hear about, I didn’t know them personally but both men were nice.”
Just yards away from the events, Kendal Christie, a worker at the Waverley Hotel said he wasn’t alerted to what had happened until he heard sirens after 3pm.
“A lot of police were in attendance and it eventually got back to us that two people had fallen off the scaffolding,” he said. “It’s such a shame that this has happened. I had seen four young girls standing by the cordon and it was starting to rain so we brought them inside to give them a juice and food.
“They must have been here until about 6.45pm before they could cross and go back home.”
Police and ambulance statements
An air ambulance, police and local firefighters scrambled to the scene yesterday following reports of the two fallen men.
In a statement, a police spokesman said: “We received a report of two men having fallen from scaffolding on Merchant Street in Peterhead around 3pm on Wednesday, 18 August, 2021.
“A 77-year-old man was pronounced dead at the scene and another 77-year-old man was taken to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary with serious injuries.
“The Health and Safety Executive has been made aware and enquiries into the circumstances are ongoing. A report will be submitted to the Procurator Fiscal.”
An ambulance spokesman said: “We received a call at 2.57pm to attend an incident on Merchant Street, Peterhead.
“An ambulance, two of our specialist operation response teams and our air ambulance were dispatched.”