Jubilee beacon watchers left in the dark

Among those ‘left in the dark’ was councillor Edwin Stevenson, who said that he was so angry “the steam coming out of my ears would have put the fire out.”

After turning up to see the lighting of the Jubilee Beacon, he described the debacle as extremely “embarrassing” and apologised for those who had also turned out for the “once in a lifetime” event. He said: “We could actually see the beacon in Scotland being lit – with us with not so much as a match. I am furious.”

One local man said he kept his children up late only for them to be disappointed. Shane Lockhead said: “It is a disgrace. They have really done it this time. We will never get this chance again.”

Limavady Borough Council said that a Jubilee Beacon was indeed lit, although it was lit at Benevenagh Point rather than at Gortmore Viewing Point as advertised.

Valerie Richmond, the Director of Development at Limavady Borough Council told the Sentinel that this was due to a “regrettable” last minute change of location.

UUP councillor Edwin Stevenson said that there were “upwards of 100 people” at Gortmore, including himself, and scores of others at Magilligan to look up and watch the Beacon being lit.

He said that “where they did light it, it is my understanding that there was nobody there to see it.”

Mr Stevenson also told of how people were “waving” a council-issued publication entitled the ‘Roe Valley Update’ at him, pointing to the council’s own schedule of Jubilee and Olympic Torch events, where it states that the Beacon would be lit at Gortmore Viewing Point at 10pm on Monday, June 4. He said: “It was there in the public domain for everybody to see. The idea behind it is that every beacon could be seen by the one behind it – we could see the other one being lit but we couldn’t see the one for Limavady which was just about a mile away. I don’t know why they changed the location. I am disappointed that it was changed from where it was supposed to be.

“There were people there that I would know quite well, and they were fairly sensible about it – but they weren’t happy. They were very angry.”

He also pointed out that it “would not have been very difficult even to send someone from the council up there to let us know it was changed. Even a signpost would probably have done it.”

He added: “There were a lot of people there. It was getting dark and they had taken young children the whole way there to be left standing around for a very long time.”

After the Sentinel made requests for clarification from Limavady Borough Council, Director of Development Valerie Richmond issued the following statement: “I can confirm that Limavady Borough Council did light a beacon on Monday evening in celebration of the Queen’s Jubilee.

“Regrettably there was a last minute change in the location of the Beacon with the new location being at Binevenagh Point rather than at Gortmore.

“Obviously we apologise sincerely to those who had made their way to Gortmore to celebrate the lighting of Limavady’s Beacon along with those across the rest of the UK and further afield.”