Memorial bench unveiled for young Heysham gas blast victim

The two-year-old was killed in the blast in Heysham last year.

Parents Vicky and Stephen joined family and friends on Saturday as the bright blue bench was unveiled overlooking where George used to play in Happy Mount Park in Morecambe.

Mr Hinds told the BBC it was an "emotional" moment and would be "somewhere for us to come and sit and remember George".

John McGuinness, the former motorcycle racer known as the "Morecambe Missile", did the honours of unveiling the bench alongside George's older brother.

He said it would "mark the spot so we'll never forget George."

The bench depicts the toddler's smiling face alongside two hearts and reads: "Snatched from our lives but not from our hearts".

Mr Hinds said it was "emotional" to see the bench in his son's favourite park, the day after he would have turned four years old.

"The last 13 months has been the worst ever... but to me, it's like he's still here with me, it's heartbreaking," he added.

"I can't thank the community enough, everyone's been amazing... and look at the turnout today."

Janice Studholme, George's grandmother, said it had been "a bit difficult" coming back to the park without her grandson as it was "still very raw for all of us".

"It's somewhere to remember the happy times we had with him... and [the bench] is a proper child's blue... it's beautiful," she said.

Steve Trainer, who organised the fundraising to pay for the memorial, said it was "such a tragedy, I just had to do something for him".

He said the community raised enough for the memorial in "just two days, which is absolutely superb".

A convoy of trucks drove along Morecambe Promenade to honour George on Sunday, following a similar event last year.

A woman and a man have been charged with manslaughter over the blast and a court case is scheduled for October.

Four other people were hurt in the explosion, which destroyed two homes and seriously damaged a third.