A veteran councillor has died after being run down by his new mobility scooter.
Joe Mackay was showing the machine to his daughter when he accidentally turned the throttle and it lurched forward and knocked him down.
The 86-year-old initially claimed he was fine and refused to go to hospital – but when he did seek medical attention he was told he had fractured his wrist and pelvis.
The retired fishing boat skipper was initially upbeat in hospital, but 24 hours later his family were called to his bedside and he died the same night.
Councillor Mackay had ordered the scooter to help him get around his home town of Buckie and stay independent.
His daughter Margaret, 60, a volunteer classroom assistant, said last night: “We went in to see him on the Sunday afternoon. He was in such good spirits, laughing and cracking jokes.
“We had a really good time. On the Monday, my brother went in, and dad was sleeping in the afternoon, and then we got the call about 10pm to get up to the hospital right now.
“One minute he was laughing and joking, and the next minute that was it. He was very, very frail and weak, and he just didn’t have the energy to fight off the infection.”
Margaret was one of three children Mr Mackay had with his late wife Nelly.
She said that despite the tragic nature of her dad’s death, she and her brother and sister – David and Hazel – along with his 10 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren would remember him fondly.
“He had a great curiosity of life and a vast knowledge,” she said.
“His famous quote was ‘never ask a question if you don’t know the answer’.
“He was very clever. He never wanted to sit about, and he intended on staying at the council until his last breath. He got on great with the staff.
“He was thrawn, and very self sufficient. Very independent, and very respected in the town.
“When he was passionate about something, he wouldn’t give up about it.”
Mr Mackay had been a Buckie ward member on Moray Council for more than 10 years.
He “lived and breathed” the fishing port his entire life, winning Citizen of the Year in 2004 for cleaning out the Buckie Burn single-handedly and providing the inspiration for the Joe Mackay Award, given to Buckie High School’s brightest student each year.
He also enjoyed politics, economics and playing the electric organ, and was a regular churchgoer in his later years.
He was first elected to Moray Council at a by-election in 2004 following the death of the council’s vice-convener, Bill Jappy.
He was re-elected in 2007 and again in 2012.
Council convener Allan Wright said: “At 86, Joe was the father of the council and much loved by members and officers alike.
“He had great wisdom and experience born of a long life at sea and living in a close-knit community.
“He had a chair in my office which he used daily – usually to lecture me on the parlous state of the world economy.
“He will be greatly missed by all those touched by his kindness, friendship and generosity.”
Council leader Stewart Cree said: “I visited Joe in hospital and the news of his death came as a great shock.
“Joe was a very sage individual, and he was a great support and comfort when times were bad and things were not going so well.”
Mr Mackay’s Buckie ward colleague, Gordon Cowie, added: “Joe was a great Buckie man, a perfect gentleman and an example to be followed.
“He always had good things to say about everyone, and never had any ill to say about anybody. What he didn’t know about the council wasn’t worth knowing.”
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