We will never forget

Apr 15 2009 by Michelle Fiddler, Wallasey News

WIRRAL will come to a standstill today as the whole of Merseyside commemorates the 20th anniversary of the Hillsborough tragedy.

Up to 10,000 people were expected to flock to Anfield for a memorial service just before 3pm.

At 3.06pm, Liverpool will fall silent with trains, buses, ferries and cars using the Mersey tunnels grinding to a halt to remember the Reds fans who died in Sheffield.

Chimes from both cathedrals and the city’s civic buildings will sound 96 times together for the first time since the end of World War II.

And at the exact time of the disaster, people across the region will be asked to observe a two minute silence.

Many shops and businesses in Wirral have agreed to honour the tribute.

A number of prominent city church leaders, including Bishop James Jones, will lead the memorial service at Anfield.

And the families who lost loved ones will be presented with their official Freedom of the City status.

Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish will perform the reading and Hillsborough Families Support Group (HFSG) president Trevor Hicks will deliver the address to the congregated crowds.

Dalglish was Reds manager at the time of the tragedy and attended many of the supporters’ funerals.

Ninety-six people died after Liverpool fans were crushed at the start of the FA Cup semi-final in 1989.

Liverpool Mayor Cllr Steve Rotheram, said: “Hillsborough affected so many lives, not just on Merseyside but across the whole of the UK.

“I attended that match and the passing years do not diminish the poignancy of the occasion.”