Grandmother of Gairloch canoe tragedy victim calls for memorial

THE grandmother of a young victim of a canoe tragedy in the Highlands is calling for a lasting poignant memorial at the scene of the devastating accident.

Juliann Mackay lost her five-year-old grand-daughter Grace when a canoe capsized at Gairloch in Wester Ross in the summer, claiming four lives.

Brothers Ewen Beaton, five, and two-year-old Jamie also died, while the body of the boys’ 32-year-old father, also Ewen, has still not been found.

He is presumed drowned.

Grace’s sister Callie, 8, and their father Garry, 35, swam 500 yards to shore to raise the alarm when the tragedy happened on Loch Gairloch on August 26.

Mrs Mackay has called for a commemorative bench overlooking the picturesque beach where the canoe carrying the two families overturned.

She has offered to pay for the bench and has written to Gairloch Community Council for permission to place it at the beach.